


Not Schizophrenia, Visions

by CarlsRightEye21



Category: Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D. (TV), Daredevil (TV), Iron Man (Movies), Marvel Cinematic Universe, The Avengers (Marvel Movies)
Genre: Blind Character, Childhood Trauma, Electroconvulsive Therapy, Future Vision, Hydra (Marvel), Implied Childhood Sexual Abuse, Implied/Referenced Child Abuse, Kay is gathering an army, Memory Issues, Mental Institutions, Original Character(s), Parent Pepper Potts, Parent Tony Stark, Past Child Abuse, SHIELD, Tony Adopts OC, Visions
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2019-09-26
Updated: 2019-11-28
Packaged: 2020-10-28 15:17:51
Rating: Mature
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 14
Words: 40,058
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/20780723
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/CarlsRightEye21/pseuds/CarlsRightEye21
Summary: Pepper Potts was contacted by a nurse from a small psychiatric ward who offered nothing other than information that shouldn't have been released to the public. The man introduced a tiny teenager who drew the images of information with claims that she could see the future.Pepper may have been skeptical if it wasn't for the fact that the teenager drew lifelike portraits and scenes and had a vision impairment.Pepper is introduced to a blind teenager who draws the Avengers in lifelike scenes despite having never seen their faces.And of course, Tony is intrigued. They always did say that Tony Stark jumped headfirst into many situations.So Tony Stark, in all his glory, adopts a blind, future seeing, traumatized teenager from a psychiatric ward.What could possibly go wrong?





	1. Prologue

Pepper Potts checks her schedule for the day and frowns. 

Her next meeting was with Fred Foster, a minimum wage nurse employed at a small mental hospital on the outskirts of New York who had tried to get an appointment for months. He had been repeatedly rejected because he refused to explain on paper why he needed an appointment. 

He finally got one after revealing a small amount of SI information that wasn't public to anyone but Tony and Pepper. 

Pepper’s first look at him was that he just came from work. His scrubs were a little crumpled and his badge was still clipped to his shirt. He was young, late twenties at most and had small rings under his eyes with blond hair that stuck up from him constantly running his hands through it.

He wasn’t dressed up for the meeting to make a good first impression. Pepper immediately wanted to kick him out but his weary demeanor and overall relief at being seen caused her to pause. 

“Ms. Potts,” He greets her, holding a large binder and a small manila folder. “Thank you so much for meeting with me.” 

He takes the seat that Pepper gestured to and places the binder and folder onto the table. 

“Why are you here today Mr. Foster?” Pepper inquired, getting straight to the point. "You have been rejected five times in the past two years."

“Fred, please,” Fred insisted before pulling the folder out and setting it onto the table and opening it. 

It was a medical file and a small picture paperclipped to the corner made Pepper pause. 

“This is Kay Merricks,” Fred explained. “She was admitted to our facility when she was twelve and diagnosed with paranoid schizophrenia and dissociative identity disorder.” 

The girl in the photo was only a teenager with short limp red hair, hastily chopped that framing her face and wide blue eyes that seemed glazed over by white film. The file said she was sixteen.

“Two years ago, I was assigned to her case and to look over her,” Fred continues. "When I first tried to contact you--"

“Fred, why are you showing me this?” Pepper interrupts. 

“I don’t think she has schizophrenia,” Fred pulls the binder up. 

“What does this have to do with Tony Stark or Stark Industries?” Pepper sighed. 

Fred opens the binder to show a variety of charcoal drawings. He takes one and slides it to her. 

Pepper looks down at the image, so well crafted that it could be a photograph, and recognizes that the drawing was of the living room in the tower of team movie night. Nobody knew about team movie night. 

Pepper realized that she drew them in the exact positions that they were in, something nobody but those present would know. 

“What--” Pepper holds the drawing up. 

Fred slides another drawing forward. 

Each drawing that Pepper looked at was something that nobody should know. Breakfast in the tower. Raiding a HYDRA base. 

Then there was a drawing of Tony working in the lab and Kay had drawn the holograms and all the information on it. The information that nobody but Tony and Pepper knew.

“Kay is gifted. I don’t think she has schizophrenia, I think she sees visions,” Fred explained. “If these drawings get into the wrong hands then it could be not only dangerous for Kay but for Stark Industries and Tony Stark.” 

Pepper was confused. “I don’t understand.” She admits. 

“Kay isn’t safe at the hospital. She’s not mentally ill. She has no family that wants her and is in danger if she keeps drawing this,” Fred taps the binder of drawings. “I’m asking you to help her.” 

“How do I know she didn’t just see these somewhere. Anyone could have drawn these,” Pepper knows that the evidence is stacking up but needs to question it. 

“Because, Ms. Potts, Kay is blind,” Fred finally finishes. “She has been blind since birth. She doesn’t even know what Tony Stark looks like.”

Pepper doesn’t know what to say. Her eyes flicker back to the stack of papers on the table. 

“What can we do to help?” Pepper leans back in her chair. 

“I don’t know,” Fred admits. “But if someone got their hands on Kay and she drew more Tony drawings then they could get their hands on his tech.” 

Pepper sighs. “I want to set up a meeting with Mr. Stark and I want you to come back and bring her.” 

She had to know that Fred was telling the truth. 

“I can bring her tomorrow,” Fred suggests. “She’s not really allowed outside because she refuses to wear shoes and she kinda gets stuck in her own head.” 

“Tomorrow is good,” Pepper nods. “Same time. Don’t be late.” 

Fred nods and they bid their goodbyes. 

Pepper really, really hoped that he was wrong. 


	2. a haon

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Fred brings Kay to meet the Avengers. Kay gets settled into the tower and Natasha learns unsettling information about Kay and the hospital she stayed at.

Fred shows up the next day, startled to see the meeting room from yesterday was filled with the Avengers. 

Pepper had explained the situation to Tony who wanted the others to see too. 

“You must be Kay,” Pepper starts, smiling at the short body hiding behind Fred. 

Kay had a fistful of Fred’s blue scrubs to keep her steady. She was wearing white pajama scrubs and true to Fred’s words, she wasn’t wearing shoes. Fred had a sketchpad and charcoal tucked under one arm as he guides Kay further into the room. 

“You’re the one that sees the future, huh?” Clint questioned as Fred pulls out a chair for Kay. 

Kay taps Fred’s arm and he passes her the notebook. 

Kay stops and flips it open and Fred passes her a piece of charcoal. 

Kay frowns as she starts to sketch, oblivious to the Avengers watching like hawks. 

“Oh. They’re probably mad I took you out, huh?” Fred questioned as he looks over her shoulder. 

Kay sets the notebook down to reveal a quick sketch of Fred as he talks on the phone. 

Kay shrugs, rocking on her feet as she moves her eyes around the room despite the fact that she cannot see anything. 

“So--” Steve starts when Fred’s phone rings. 

“I have to get this, don’t I?” Fred questioned. Kay nods and Fred sighs. “You’re gonna have to talk a little.” 

Kay nods. She knew that. 

“Don’t wander. Stay here, please?” Fred begs before he turns towards the others. “I have to get this. I’m so sorry.” 

Tony waves Fred off and they’re left with Kay. 

“Do you want to take a seat?” Clint questioned. “Or, uh, do you need help?” 

Kay moves towards the table, a quiet shuffle as her bare feet find their way around the wooden floor. 

She moves past her chair and further along the line. 

Kay makes her way towards Tony Stark and pauses in front of him. She reaches into her pocket and pulls out a folded piece of paper and holds it out. 

The paper was weathered, crumpled and stained. 

“This for me?” Tony questioned. “Uh…” 

Kay sets the paper onto the table like she knew he didn’t like to be handed things. 

Tony swipes the paper and unfolds it. 

His eyes grow wide at the portrait of the man displayed on the paper. A man who saved his life long ago. 

“Holy shit,” Tony breathes out. 

“Language,” Steve chides. 

“Did you know him?” Tony demands, holding the paper up even though she doesn’t see it. 

Kay shakes her head. 

“Then how do you know him?” Tony demands. 

Kay reaches a hand up and Tony can see bruises around her wrists from some type of restraint. Her hand hovers right over his heart and the arc reactor. “Sorry.” 

Tony frowns. “For what?” 

“Ten Rings,” Kay replies. 

Tony suddenly can’t breathe. 

“He’s happy,” Kay mumbles. “Free. Peace. No more hurt.” 

Tony’s hands shoot out to grab fistfuls of the white pajama top and stands, yanking Kay closer to him. The other Avengers were startled and stand too, ready to protect Kay. 

“Did you see?” Tony croaks. 

Kay nods and her hand reaches up to lightly touch the arc reactor. “Badassium.” 

Tony lets out a snort. “Good god, kid. What did you see?” 

Kay cocks her head in response. “Everything.” 

“So you really do see the future, huh?” Tony lets Kay go and she steadies herself. 

“Pictures,” Kay nods. “Sounds.” 

Kay’s hand snaps out just in time to catch the water bottle that Clint had chucked at her. 

“Clint!” Steve scolds. 

“I wanted to test her ‘future vision’!” Clint defends himself. 

“Why do you see us?” Natasha speaks up for the first time. “Do you see everybody? Just important things? Do you focus on us?” 

Fred enters the room to see Kay standing by Tony. 

“He’s coming,” Kay hums. 

“Who?” Natasha pressed. 

“The Mad Titan,” Kay breathes out. 

Her head then dips into a bow. 

“Catch her!” Fred yelps, darting towards Kay as her knees buckle. 

Tony manages to save Kay from smacking her head onto the table and safely guides her to the floor. 

“What’s wrong?” Pepper questioned. 

“A vision,” Fred explained. “Someone please get her notebook.” 

Fred props Kay against him and takes the notebook that Clint had grabbed, flipping it to a clean sheet and then grabs a piece of charcoal, tapping it into her limp hand. 

Her fingers eventually close around the charcoal and Fred guides her hand to the paper. 

Kay was staring at the ceiling as she draws as her hand rapidly starts to sketch. 

Figures come into view as she works on details. 

The face is blank but the figure is large with armor plates and a helmet. She then starts on the background. 

There are stars in the sky and rocks lining the background. 

Fred talks to her softly throughout it. He encourages her to just draw and that she was safe. 

Kay finishes and her hand goes limp, the charcoal falling from her fingers and rolling onto the floor. 

“It’s alright, Kay,” Fred brushes some of her wild red hair out of her face. 

Kay blinks a few times until she is a little more present. 

“Seven years,” Kay reaches up with the notebook to Tony. “You have seven years to prepare.” 

“Prepare for the Mad Titan,” Tony whispered. “The wormhole. I saw it.” 

Kay nods. 

“I need you to make a decision soon,” Fred pipes up. “I can either take her back with me or I can return empty-handed and claimed that she ran.” 

“Do we have to decide now?” Tony questioned. 

“Unfortunately,” Fred frowns. “Listen. That place isn’t good for anyone there. It is an absolute shithole that needs to be shut down. I cannot guarantee that Kay will be safe or won’t be moved when it eventually comes to an end.” 

“I think we need to discuss this as a team,” Steve announced. 

“We’ll take her,” Tony interrupts.

“Tony?” Pepper looks towards him. 

“She’s not some puppy, Stark,” Clint frowns. “This is a human child you’re talking about.” 

“We can iron out the details later but for right now, it’s safer if she’s here,” Tony was firm. “Did you all just miss whatever we witnessed? You don’t back me, that’s fine. She’ll live at MY tower and I’ll watch over her. Jarvis set up one of the guest bedrooms. 

“Right away sir,” Jarvis acknowledges. 

“Fred?” Kay mumbled. 

“I gotta leave, Kay,” Fred peels himself away from her so that he can look at her properly. “I can’t be seen around you again or it’ll look fishy. Will you be okay if I leave you here?” 

“I--” Kay frowns. “I don’t want you to leave.” 

Fred sighs and brushed back Kay’s hair before pulling her into a hug. “It isn’t safe anymore, kiddo. You’ll be safe here. They’ll treat you much better.” 

“No more treatment?” Hope fills Kay’s voice. 

“No,” Fred grins. 

“Pills?” 

“No.” 

“Straps?” 

“Definitely not.” 

“Sponges?” 

“No. Kay, you’ll be safe. They aren’t going to hurt you,” Fred promised. “Maybe much later on, I can come and see you.” 

“Okay,” Kay nods. She hesitates. “You’ll be okay.” 

“Yeah? Will I find a new job that I’m surely going to need after I ‘lose’ you?” Fred teases. 

Kay nods. “You’ll be happy.” 

Fred’s grin softens into a gentle smile. “You’ll be happy too, kiddo.” 

Fred then looks up at the others. “And if I hear otherwise then you have other things to worry about other than whoever she just drew.” 

“Kay will be safe,” Pepper promises him. 

Kay stands and hugs Fred one more time. 

“Is it alright if I come back tomorrow with instructions?” Fred questioned. “And for another alibi?” 

“Same time tomorrow,” Pepper nods. 

Fred draws away from Kay and looks down at her. “Be safe, Kay.” 

Kay smiles up at him before he turns and leaves. 

“So,” Tony starts. “Kay. Hello.” 

Kay turns around and faces his direction. She has a soft amused smile on her face. 

“Shall we head back?” Steve offers. “We can order some take out. What kind of food do you like, Kay?” 

Kay doesn’t reply, rocking on her feet. 

“Kay?” Clint tries. 

“I’ve had the same breakfast, lunch, and dinner for years,” Kay quietly mumbles. “I dunno what I like.” 

“Well then, I say good old fashioned pizza,” Tony decides. “You wanna try some pizza, Kay?”

Kay nods and the group stands up. 

“I’ll finish up here and meet you guys later on,” Pepper tells them. “Here, Kay, don’t forget your book.” 

Pepper reaches out Kay’s book but Kay grabs her wrist instead. 

“Kay?” Pepper questioned. 

Kay shakes her head, tugging on Pepper’s wrist towards the door. 

“You gonna talk to us?” Natasha questioned. 

Kay frowns, tugging again. 

“Why can’t she stay?” Tony asks. 

Kay reaches a finger up to her lips. 

The chattering stops as they stare at Kay. 

Kay tugs on Pepper’s wrist again. 

Pepper follows as Kay leads the way out of the room, bare feet shuffling along the floor as she carefully guides herself out of the room. 

Kay doesn’t speak until dinner that night when Tony gets a notification on his phone. 

He looks down and his jaw drops and he looks up at where Kay was drinking a soda. 

“How did you know?” He whispered in awe. 

“Know what?” Clint questioned as he stuffed another garlic knot in his mouth. 

“There was an incident at SI,” Tony explained and the room stiffened. “In the lab under Pepper’s office. An explosion that caused the ceiling to cave in and collapsed the floor of Pepper’s office.” 

Eyes turn towards Kay as she takes another bite of pepperoni pizza. 

“Safe,” She mumbled. 

Tony turns towards Pepper. “You could have died today.” 

“You did good kiddo,” Clint claps Kay on the back, not expecting the flinch she gave that caused her to drop her plate. 

It was a paper plate included with the boxes of pizza so it fluttered to the ground along with her uneaten food. 

“Shit-- I’m sorry,” Clint pulls his hand back. “I didn’t mean it.” 

“Kay?” Steve questioned. 

Kay’s milky blue eyes were trained on the floor. 

“Sorry,” She whispered. 

“It was an accident,” Tony assures her. “I spill shit all the time.” 

“Language,” Steve chides. 

“You’re not in any trouble,” Pepper assures her. 

“Yeah. Can’t you see it?” Clint questioned. 

Kay scrunches her face up. “I don’t see me.” 

“You don’t?” Tony steers the conversation away from Kay’s reaction to Clint. “So you just see us? Never saw yourself?” 

Kay shrugs. 

“Have you ever used your visions to watch television?” Tony questioned. 

“I don’t force it,” Kay chooses her words carefully. “They come to me.” 

“Hey, wait--” Clint interrupts. “You caught that water bottle I threw at you earlier. Wasn’t that a vision of yourself?”

Kay shifts uncomfortably before shrugging. 

“You know, I could really go for a movie,” Tony suggests. “What do you think Kay?” 

“It’s been years since I heard one,” Kay quietly admits. 

“Shall we move this party to the living room?” Tony questioned. 

Kay stands and moves with the rest of them. 

Steve notices her stop. “Kay?”

Kay’s face was blank. 

“Hey, Kay?” Steve questioned. 

Her hands reach up and start to draw despite having nothing to draw with. 

“Shit!” Clint snatches up her notebook and flips it open while Natasha grabs a piece of her charcoal. 

Clint holds the notebook over her hand and Natasha taps the piece of charcoal into her fingers as Fred did earlier. 

The drawing is incomplete, basic outlines are missing but it was simple to see that she just drew a bedroom. 

Her arms suddenly go limp and the items go spilling to the floor, the charcoal shattering into pieces. 

Kay blinks a few times before looking up at them. Her eyes settle on Steve despite the fact she could not see. 

“You okay?” Steve awkwardly questioned. 

Kay simply nods. She moves past Steve and towards the living room to where Tony had set up the movie. 

* * *

Kay falls asleep during the movie. She had chosen to sit on the floor between Tony and Pepper. Her head eventually found itself on Tony’s leg as she slept. 

The movie ends and it was quiet for a few moments. 

“Okay. Shall we talk about what Tony did now?” Clint questioned. 

Heads jerk to look at him. 

Clint gestured to the sleeping teenager at his feet. 

“Were we really about to send her back there?” Tony questioned. “Am I the only one that noticed her flinch or bruising around her wrists from being restrained?” 

“She’s blind, not deaf,” Natasha reminds them. 

“Let’s get her up and to bed,” Tony stands. 

“I can carry her,” Clint offers. 

“No. It’s best to wake her up,” Tony argues. 

“Why? Just let her sleep?” Steve questioned. 

“Imagine being blind and falling asleep in the living room. When you wake up you think you’re still there but when you stand you’re not. You don’t know where you are or how you got there and there is no one around to tell you,” Tony paints the picture. “We need to get something straight right now. Kay is not a normal teenager. We cannot do things that other parents would do. I imagine that if you tickle her unprovoked that she would scream in fear rather than squeal in laughter. We can ask Ted or whatever his name was for instructions on how to best handle her tomorrow.” 

“We’re flying by the seat of our pants here,” Clint argues. “But I see your point.” 

“Kay?” Pepper reaches down to shake her awake. 

Kay jerks upright, slapping Pepper’s hand away and frantically scoots away from her. 

“Woah, hey,” Tony wraps an arm around Pepper who had shrunk away in shock. “Kay, you’re in the living room of the Avengers Tower. You fell asleep watching a movie.” 

Kay had slapped her hands over her mouth and they slowly lowered. “Tower.” She softly repeats. 

“We woke you up to take you to your room,” Steve explained. 

Kay uncoils. “Okay.” 

Kay bumps into things as she stands up but refuses help. It takes a moment for her to get her bearings before she’s standing by the elevator. 

Natasha is the one that takes Kay to her room, volunteering a pair of her pajamas up for Kay to use until they have time to shop. 

Kay follows Natasha the guest bedroom and Natasha pauses in the doorway when she recognizes it as the one Kay drew earlier. 

“Right,” Natasha draws Kay’s attention back to her. “I’ll grab you a pair of pajamas. If you need anything, you can ask Tony’s AI, Jarvis. Jarvis, say hello to Kay.” 

“Hello, Ms. Merrick,” Jarvis replies. “I am JARVIS, Sir’s AI. Welcome to the tower.” 

Kay was looking up at the ceiling in wonder. “Jar--vis?” She repeats. 

Natasha leaves to grab Kay a pair of pajamas and trusts Jarvis to watch over Kay. 

Kay was left to her own devices and makes her way around the room. 

“Jarvis?” Kay questioned. 

“Yes, Ms. Merrick?” Jarvis questioned. 

“Kay,” Kay corrects. “Do you know any stories?” 

“Would you like me to find a particular story?” Jarvis questioned. 

“Fred tells me the story of Alice in Wonderland,” Kay informs him. 

“Would you like me to read Alice in Wonderland to you?” Jarvis inquired. 

Kay sits on the floor and pulls her knees up to her chest and rested her chin on her knees. “Yes.” 

Jarvis finds the story and starts to read. That was the scene that Natasha came back to. 

“Pause, Jarvis,” Natasha requests. 

Jarvis pauses the story and Kay’s head jerks up to look at where Natasha was. 

“I’ve brought a change of pajamas. Can you get dressed on your own?” Natasha questioned. 

Kay frowns and shakes her head. “Help.” 

Natasha wasn’t prepared for this. 

Kay cocks her head to the side. “No?” 

“Alright,” Natasha nods. “Shirt off.” 

Kay pulls her shirt up and Natasha’s eyes narrow on bruises that become visible. 

Kay folds her shirt neatly and sets it on the edge of the bed. She reaches back to unclasp her bra Natasha freezes at the bruising around the clasps. 

Kay sets the bra neatly on the shirt. 

“Shirt?” Kay looks towards Natasha. 

Natasha grabs the shirt she took and guides Kay’s fingers. “This is the front. This is the back.” 

Kay pulls the shirt on and fumbles for a second until her arms find the proper holes. 

Kay then works on her pants, sliding them down and stepping out, folding them neatly and placing them next to her shirt. 

Natasha’s eyes are drawn to the red rings around Kay’s ankles from restraint and the purple fingerprinted bruises on her thighs. 

“Pants?” Kay prompts again. 

Natasha unfolds the pajama pants and helps Kay. “Front. Back.” She guides. 

Kay pulls the pants on and fiddles with the drawstrings. 

“I’ve brought you a toothbrush. We can head to the bathroom,” Natasha starts and Kay starts to move towards where the bathroom was. 

How Kay could move around with such ease but not manage to dress herself confused Natasha. 

Natasha gives Kay a quick rundown of the bathroom and watches as Kay brushes her teeth. “If you need any one of us, you can ask Jarvis to alert us or you can just ask Jarvis.” 

Kay nods and spits the toothpaste out, setting her toothbrush on the counter, turning to Natasha. “Bed?” 

“Yes,” Natasha nods. 

Kay moves towards her bed and stands on the left side but doesn’t get in. 

“Kay?” Natasha prompts. 

Kay turns to look in her direction. 

“Shall we get you into bed?” Natasha moves forward and pulls the covers back. 

Kay frowns. “No pills?”

“No medication,” Natasha shakes her head. “In.”

Kay crawls into bed and Natasha pulls the covers over her body and turns to leave when Kay’s hand snaps out to grab her. 

Natasha squashes down the instinct to lash out and turns back towards her. “Did you need something else?” 

“No straps?” Kay questioned. 

“Straps?” Natasha repeats. 

Kay rubs her wrist and dread settles into Natasha’s stomach. 

“To keep me in bed,” Kay clarifies. 

“We’re not going to restrain you while you sleep,” Natasha tucks flashbacks of the Red Room and being handcuffed to her bed into the back corner of her mind. 

Kay lets Natasha go. “Ever?” 

“We’re not going to strap you down,” Natasha firmly informs her. 

“Okay,” Kay leans back and Natasha pulls the covers back up. 

“Goodnight, Kay,” Natasha moves towards the door and turns off the light. 

She needed a drink and to think overall the new information she just got. 

“Goodnight,” Kay replies.


	3. a dó

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Pepper receives a notebook of instructions from Fred on how to best handle Kay.   
Tony decides that it's best to present Kay to the world as his daughter.

Fred shows up the next day with a spiral-bound notebook filled with blue ink. 

“I cannot stay long,” He frowns. “I’ve gathered everything that I could on her. This notebook contains important notes pertaining to her.” 

Pepper accepts the notebook and flips through it seeing the hastily scrawled words. 

“I’m on probation for losing her. Look, this place needs to be shut down,” Fred tells her. 

“Shut down?” Pepper repeats. 

“Everything is in there,” Fred promises. “My phone number is at the very back but you cannot call me unless it is a life or death emergency.” 

“This is really helpful. Thank you, Fred,” Pepper sets the notebook down. 

Fred then sets down a bag of medication. “This is the medication that she is currently on. She’ll probably have to be weaned off of most of them but if you go cold turkey then please explain that to her beforehand.” 

Pepper frowns at the upward of ten pill bottles in the bag. “Of course.”

“Kay is allergic to shellfish,” Fred continues. “Her epi-pen is at the bottom of the bag.” 

Pepper notes the allergy and the yellow pen at the bottom of the pile of pill bottles.

“Thank you,” Fred smiles. “I need to leave. I can’t be seen hanging out too long.” 

Pepper nods and Fred leaves. 

Pepper tucks the notebook and pendant away until she finishes work. Kay was entranced in listening to a documentary with Steve when she returned so she decided to let Kay be. 

Instead, she heads up to the bedroom she shared with Tony and opened the notebook. 

_ Tips and Tricks for KM _

  * __KM has anywhere from zero to upwards of fifty visions each day. There is no telling beforehand__
  * _There is no sure way to tell she’s having a vision. She may freeze, relax, go silent, go stiff, grab your shirt, etc. It’s a guessing game. _
  * _Do not offer KM any type of walking assistance ex: canes, walkers, service dog or anything to cover her eyes such as sunglasses. KM will react negatively_
  * _Do not restain KM when she has a vision unless she is self-harming. Let her ride it out and talk to her through it_
  * _If KM gets hurt she will not seek out medical attention. You will have to ask her directly and coax it out_
  * _KM will not always draw during visions, do not pressure her to share them with you. She will share if it is necessary_
  * _Thunderstorms, electricity in general, scares her. The hospital doesn’t think older methods are barbaric_
  * _It is handy to keep a small notebook on each person and a small drawing utensil for KM’s disposal_
  * _Unless it is life or death, do not move KM during a vision other than to lower her to the ground or somewhere safe. It upsets her to come back someplace different_
  * _You cannot force visions. KM sees what she sees. She doesn’t pick and choose_
  * _You cannot make KM wear shoes. Do not try. She may allow socks on particularly cold days but has been known to walk through the snow barefoot_
  * _KM may get frightened from some of her visions but you should not allow her to resort to caffeine and other tactics to stay up late, instead, offer comfort and talk it out. She may need someone to sleep by her side_
  * _KM doesn’t talk much and refuses to learn sign. She gives monosyllabic answers. She also doesn’t initiate contact unless she explicitly trusts that person_
  * _KM may experience lucid visions that blend with reality that correspond with the symptoms of paranoid schizophrenia. Keep her safe, don’t let her wander and remind her of where she is_
  * _KM may know a lot about your past for no reason and may incorporate small tidbits into a conversation. She doesn’t mean to pry, she wants to get to know you and doesn't know how_
  * _I suspect some of the staff had inappropriate interactions with the patients_
  * _KM may have a vision and not acknowledge it. If she doesn’t, don’t bring it up. She’ll talk when she’s ready_
  * _KM does well with routine and positive reinforcement_
  * _Above all, KM is a child. It’s easy to forget but in the end she is young._

Pepper could have kissed Fred for the thoughtful this was. The next sheet of paper was small photo-copied medical documents and parts of Kay’s history.

Pepper wanted to throw up at some of the medical history. 

  * Patient 05 needs to be restrained when sleeping to keep from lashing out
  * Patient was sedated after reacting negatively to cutting her hair to prevent lice
  * Patient attacked nurse for shaving patches for electroshock therapy
  * Patient doesn’t respond to the fourth electroshock therapy treatment 
  * Patient spent four days in solitary
  * Patient bumped into things and was properly punished
  * Changed medication 02 for sedative
  * Nurse caught making sexual advances to patient and fired
  * Patient restrained, screaming for ‘Tony’
  * Patient caught talking to ‘Steve’
  * Patient called out to ‘Clint’ for help
  * Patient cried for ‘Natasha’ and dug wounds in her stomach
  * Patient came into contact with shellfish and had went into anaphylactic shock
  * Patient became sick from ‘The Mad Titan’ and had to be sedated and moved to solitary

Then there was Kay’s actual background.

Kay’s parents were arrested when she was eleven for drug charges and neglect. Kay didn’t last but a year in foster care before she was abandoned at the mental hospital. Kay never had a stable life, people to rely on or a support system. Fred was probably the only person to show her kindness and compassion.

To believe her.

Pepper planned on shutting down this hospital as soon as she could. No child-- scratch that-- no human should ever be treated that way. 

The door creaks open and Pepper’s head jerks up to look at Kay standing in the doorway. 

“Hello Kay,” Pepper greets her and puts away the papers. “Anything I can do for you?” 

Kay shuffles in and holds up her notebook. 

It’s a drawing of Pepper, her face angry and tears in her eyes as she holds a phone to her ear. 

“Am I making or receiving the call?” Pepper sighs. 

Kay shrugs apologetically. 

Remembering Fred’s notes, Pepper softens. “Aw, don’t worry about it, sweet girl. Why don’t I take a break and we can get something to eat.” 

Kay gestured towards the nightstand where Pepper guessed she meant the clock sat. She hadn’t realized that she read for so long and it was nearing night.

“I know it’s late. How about so cocoa?” Pepper stands and makes her way towards Kay. 

Kay shrugs and Pepper is startled when Kay reaches up to grab a hold of her pajama top. Kay hesitates when Pepper stops. 

“Let’s go,” Pepper moves and Kay moves with her. 

* * *

“Is your future vision always concrete?” Tony blurts at breakfast one morning as Clint and Kay are the only ones up. 

Kay, in all her bed-headed glory, looks up from her bowl of cereal. “Hm?”

“I think he means to ask if you can influence the future,” Clint clarifies. 

Kay shrugs, swirling her spoon around in her bowl. “Sometimes.” 

“So the vision you had of Pepper the other day. Did you know that she needed to be somewhere else or did you see her get hurt and tried to change the outcome?” Tony inquired. 

“Sometimes they’re just whispers,” She mumbled. “Voices. ‘Don’t let her stay’, they said.” 

“So you don’t always see it?” Tony inquired. 

“No,” Kay shoves a spoonful of soggy cereal into her mouth. “I hear whispers. Sometimes I see flashes of pictures. Hard to change visions because I don’t know who is who.” 

“So you have visions of us almost dailey and you don’t even know who we are?” Tony questioned. 

“You’re Tony,” Kay corrects. “I know what you look like in my head but I only know because of your voice.” 

“Do you have to guess about your visions often?” Clint inquired. “Interpret them?” 

Kay shrugs. “Sedated. No one listens.” 

Tony and Clint share a look. “Well. We’ll listen. You need help interpreting them or just want to talk, we’ll listen and won’t judge.” 

“Even the bad ones?” Kay turns to look at him. 

“Even the bad ones,” He nods. 

Kay smiles a little and shoves another spoonful into her mouth. “I like cereal.” 

“Wait until you try Lucky Charms,” Clint grins. “They’re much better than Cheerios.” 

“What did you eat there?” Tony questioned, ignoring the glare Clint shoots him. 

“Oatmeal. Peanut butter and jelly or ham and cheese. Chicken and rice,” Kay lists. 

“Right. J, try to work our diets around that and expand our paletes,” Tony announced. 

“Noted, sir,” Jarvis confirms. 

“Mamó used to make Colcannon before she passed,” Kay mumbles. 

“What’s that?” Tony asks. 

“Colcannon is a traditional dish with origins tracing to Ireland. Colcannon is kale, potatoes, milk, butter and scallions mashed together much like mashed potatoes, sir,” Jarvis explained. 

“You Irish?” Clint questioned her. “Mamó?” 

Kay shrugs. 

“You’ve certainly got the red hair for it,” Clint comments. “Well, Natasha’s hair is red too but she’s Russian.” 

Kay finishes her cereal and wanders back to her room after assuring Tony she could make it. 

“Read more?” She requests of Jarvis. 

“Of course,” Jarvis replies before he picks back up where he was cut off last night as Kay sprawls on the bed and closes her eyes. 

Jarvis reads until Pepper comes into Kay’s room and asks him to pause. 

“I thought we could do some shopping today,” Pepper suggests. “You need something other than that white uniform.” 

Kay shrugs but sits up and makes her way towards Pepper, reaching out to grab a bit of her shirt like last night. 

Pepper doesn’t mind the wrinkles her grip leaves. 

* * *

“No.”

“Yes.” 

“No.” 

“Yes.” 

“No.” 

“Why not?” 

“Don’t wanna.” 

Clint huffs. “Why don’t you want to wear shoes?” 

Kay shrugs. 

“Kay,” Clint groans. 

“Shoes aren’t allowed,” Kay folds her arms, head ducking down to avoid his gaze. “They’re bad.” 

“I give up,” Clint sighed and looked towards Pepper who hadn’t succeeded either. “Ask Nat.” 

“You think she’ll get any further?” Pepper questioned. 

Clint shrugs in response and Pepper sighs. 

Kay goes still at the frustrated exhale. “I’m sorry.” 

Clint and Pepper turn towards Kay. 

“I made you mad. I’m sorry. I’m really sorry. I won’t do it again!” Kay’s voice goes soft, fingers twisting her shirt around as she bows her head. 

“Why do you not like shoes?” Pepper collects herself and forces herself to remain calm. 

She was a business woman, not a nanny.

Kay shrugs again but replies. “They hurt.” 

“They… hurt?” Clint repeats. “Shoe shouldn’t hurt, Kay.” 

“But they do,” Kay protests. 

“Gimme your foot,” Clint squats in front of Kay. 

Kay does as he asks no matter how confused she is and Clint isn’t sure if he likes how quick she was to obey. 

Clint takes her right foot first and searches it over for any reason why shoes may have hurt her. 

To his surprise, there are crisscrossed scars on the soles of her feet from being sliced with some object. 

“Shit,” Clint mumbles. “Okay. Other foot.”

Kay’s left foot was just like her right. 

“Well?” Pepper questioned. 

“What happened to your feet?” Clint keeps his voice soft and reassuring. “Did you step on something sharp?” 

Kay shakes her head and doesn’t reply. 

“Did someone hurt your feet?” Clint inquired. 

Kay was quiet, neither confirming or denying it. 

“Okay. That’s okay,” Clint promised. “You don’t have to wear shoes at the moment.” 

He exchanges a look with Pepper that promised they would talk later. 

“We can’t shop if she doesn’t wear shoes,” Pepper sighs. 

“Can’t you just go to one of those fancy tailor places and pay them?” Clint questioned. “Use a little of Tony’s money to keep everything hush hush.” 

“She can’t walk in the streets in bare feet,” Pepper sighed. 

Clint shrugs. “You’re planning this all out. I would just wing it.” 

“Need to sit,” Kay suddenly blurts and they turn towards her again. 

Clint and Pepper manage to each grab one arm before Kay’s body goes limp. They carefully lower her to the floor and Clint propers her up against him while Pepper talks softly to Kay. 

Kay was unnaturally still and if it wasn’t for the warmth of her body or the soft rising of her chest, Clint would have thought her dead. 

Kay’s hands suddenly jerk up to grab fistfuls of her hair and she violently tugs. 

“Woah, hey!” Pepper and Clint scramble to stop Kay from hurting herself. 

“Get out! Get out of my head!” Kay screams. “Out!” 

The screaming attracted the others who watch with concern as Kay sobs and struggles in Clint’s arms as she tries to grab at her head. 

“Should we sedate her?” Tony questioned. 

“No drugging,” Pepper snaps. 

“She’s hurting herself,” Steve points out. 

“Trying to,” Clint corrects. “And she’s not. She’s having some sort of fucked up vision of the future.” 

Kay leans back into Clint and her hands fall to her sides. “Don’t go to Phoenix.” She whispers. “He’ll kill you.” 

The room is silent as Kay goes limp again and her breathing evens out. 

“Okay. Who was planning on going to Phoenix?” Clint looks up at them. 

“I have a conference,” Tony raised his hand. “I guess I won’t go?”

Pepper sighed. “It’s mandatory.” 

“Uh, I don’t want to die,” Tony gestured towards Kay. “Can’t we move it or something? Or we can claim time off since we just adopted a kid.” 

“You want to bring Kay into the public?” Steve questioned. “That’s not a good idea.” 

“She’ll become a target,” Clint agrees. 

“She’ll be the perfect excuse for avoiding certain places,” Natasha argues. “You need to go somewhere but Kay sees it going bad then you can stay back. Kay is disabled and that gives the perfect excuse to get out of situations.” 

Pepper sighed and looked over at Kay who was curled up in Clint’s lap, hair sticking up from yanking it. 

She can see small shaved patches just under all her wild red hair from electroshock therapy. 

“We could even play off the diagnosis she was given,” Natasha continued. “Paranoid schizophrenia and dissociative identity disorder.” 

“Then they would ask questions,” Pepper counters. “Why would Tony adopt her in specific. What made her special?” 

“We’ll claim she’s from my wild days and I recently found her,” Tony flaps his hands. “Then I took her in because she’s mind.” 

“You want to claim you’re her biological father and turn this into a PR stunt?” Pepper questioned. 

“Christine is nice,” Kay mumbles and heads turn towards her. “Individual interview. Me and Tony.” 

“Christine Everhart!” Tony snaps his fingers. “Brilliant. She likes me and with a kid like you she can spin this in our favor.” 

“Does that mean it’s going to happen?” Clint questioned. 

“What do you say, kiddo?” Tony questioned. “This is your show. Do you want to step into the spotlight?” 

Kay was quiet for a moment before nodding. “I have to.” 

“You don’t have to do anything,” Pepper argues. 

Kay shakes her head. “No. I have to. I will. There’s no changing.” 

“Call for a conference,” Tony tells Pepper. “I’ll take Kay shopping.”

“You’re… going to take her shopping?” Pepper repeats. 

“Well, we’ve got to give them a glimpse and let them speculate. She can’t just come out of nowhere,” Tony points out. “So, I’ll take her out.” 

Tony turns towards Kay. “What do you say, jelly bean?”

Kay smiles softly. “Okay.” 

“Does she have to call you ‘dad’?” Clint questioned. 

“Only if she wants to,” Tony shrugs. “Or if you want to keep calling me Tony, you can.” He directs the last sentence at Kay. 

“Dadai,” Kay mumbles. 

“Did you call me daddy?” Tony questioned. 

“Dadai,” Natasha corrects. “Daddy in Irish Gaelic.”

“Right. You’re Irish,” Tony nods. “Got it.” 

Tony moves towards her. “Let’s get you up and out so we can shop until we drop.”

Kay outstretches her hands and Tony takes them, pulling her out of Clint’s lap and ignoring that he took something from someone else. Granted, it was a hand but Tony still took it. 

“Pull a car around, Jarvis, we’re heading out,” Tony doesn’t let go of Kay’s hand and Kay doesn’t pull away. 

Tony takes Kay into the elevator before turns towards the others. “Congratulations. You are now honorary uncles and aunt of my newly found daughter.” 

He doesn’t stick around to listen to the outcome as the elevator doors slide shut and he’s alone with Kay. 

Tony breaks first and a snicker escapes his lips. 

Kay lets a giggle escape through hers and soon their in peals of laughter. 

“Alrighty,” Tony exits the elevator into the garage, pulling Kay with him. “Let’s get you some new threads.” 

Kay pauses before Tony finds which car he wants. 

“What’s up, buttercup?” Tony turns towards her. 

Kay gestured towards her face. “Hide.” 

“You want to hide your face?” Tony questioned before it dawned on him. “Or just your eyes?” 

“Eyes,” Kay uses a hand to cover her eyes. 

“Here,” Tony pulls off his pair of sunglasses and guides them into Kay’s hands, helping her slide them onto her face. “Looking spiffy there,” Tony grins as he opens the passenger door to the car and helps Kay get in, keeping her from bumping her head and pulling the seat belt across her body. “Say, when was the first time you saw me? Like had a vision?”

Kay hums in thought as Tony gets into the drivers seat. “I first saw you with the man. The doctor.” 

“Yinsen?” Tony whispered. “The man you drew in the picture you gave to me. Was that your first vision?” 

“You were screaming and they had…” Kay wasn’t sure how to describe it but she gestures to her chest. “...Yinsen.” She finally breathed out as if putting a name to a face.

“How old were you when you got your first vision?” Tony questioned softly as he sets upon driving to the store. 

“I don’t know,” Kay shrugs. “I can’t remember sometimes.” 

“Sometimes?” Tony repeats. 

“I forgot my name,” Kay taps her head. “The sponges made me lose it.” 

“They used sponge coated electrodes?” Tony echoes. “And they messed with your mind so much that you forgot your own name?” 

Kay ducks her head down as if ashamed. “I thought my name was Eira.” 

“Eira?” Tony repeats. “Why on earth did you think your name was Eira?” 

Kay shrugged. “It… fit. It seemed right. Fred corrected me.” 

Tony hums in thought as he pulls into the parking lot. He exits and moves around to Kay’s side and opened her door, helping her unbuckle her seatbelt and stand without bumping her head. 

“There’s broken glass a few feet away,” Tony sighed, looking around. “You mind if I carry you?” 

Kay frowns. “I like my feet on the ground.” 

“I’ll put you down as soon as we get to the doors. I just don’t want you to slice your feet open before we can even start our shopping spree,” Tony points out. 

It takes a moment for Kay to decide before she nods. 

Wearing the Iron-Man armor had helped Tony strengthen but he expected Kay to be heavier. It was obvious that she was underweight and short for her age, likely from lack of nutrients while she was growing up. Kay wraps her arms around his neck as he picks her up. 

Tony pretends he doesn’t notice the stares as he strides up to the building and sets Kay down, opening the door and guiding Kay inside. 

He introduced Kay to his personal tailors and they were delighted to have a little girl to dress up. 

Kay didn’t care about anything other than the texture. She would rub the fabric between a few fingers and sometimes bring the extra soft ones up to rub against her cheek. 

She didn’t care about color or size or style and that left the tailors with a broad category and they were delighted. 

The tailors didn’t ask questions that didn’t pertain to the fitting. They were careful and courteous of Kay’s disability and that pleased Tony to know that he made the right choice. 

The tailors explain what they were doing before they would do it, giving warning when they were going to touch her. 

They were measuring her waist when Kay’s arm jerks towards where Tony was standing. “Tony!” 

Tony moves towards her, confused. 

“I… sit…” Kay mumbles and Tony suddenly understood and lunged forward to help guide Kay to sit on the floor. 

The tailors offered to call an ambulance but Tony concocted a story of a seizure disorder. Another thing he would have to add onto the list of fake diagnosis. 

Kay’s vision doesn’t last long, only twenty seconds or so and she slowly sits up. “Sorry.” 

“Don’t apologize, buttercup,” Tony assures her. “Let’s stand you up so you can rock this world in your new threads.” 

Kay gets practically every piece of clothing that she needed from the tailors and they give an estimated wait time of three weeks to get all clothes sent out. 

Tony decides for one more outing to be seen with Kay. 

“You ever have ice cream?” Tony questioned. 

“No,” Kay shakes her head. “What is it?” 

“A cold delicious treat. Let’s go get some to celebrate my newfound fatherhood,” Tony grins. 

Kay grins back. “Should I call you Dadai?” 

“Sure my newly found wayward child from my wild days,” Tony nods.

Kay laughs and Tony takes them to an ice cream parlor and once again carries Kay to the door. 

Heads turn when they enter, children stop licking their ice cream cones and adults stare as Tony Stark enters this little ice cream shop with a random child in tow. 

“Let’s see,” Tony hums as he looks over the case of ice cream. “How does good old fashioned chocolate swirl sound?” 

“Yes Dadai,” Kay nods, reaching out to grip his arm. 

Tony orders and the woman behind the counter manages to make the transaction and not be too star-struck. 

They get two small cups of chocolate swirl and Tony sits them at a booth in the corner, handing Kay her cup and spoon. 

It takes a few tries for Kay to understand how big the bowl was before she sinks her spoon in and takes a bite. 

Despite the show he put on the for the press, Tony can’t help but watch as Kay takes her first bite of ice cream and lights up. He’s reminded of the fact that Kay didn’t have a childhood and spend the last few years locked in a psychiatric facility. 

Tony was getting attached to Kay who reminded him just a little too much of himself when he was a child. 

Tony was going to make sure Kay got all the experiences that both he and her missed out on because he had poor impulse control and adopted a teenager. 

Tony was the last person he would have thought could be a father. He had issues a mile long including forgetting to take care of himself and PTSD from Afghanistan. 

But what’s done is done so Tony was going to step up and he was going to be the best damned father he could be. 

  
  



	4. a trí

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Kay breaks down from an upsetting vision while in her interview with Christine Everhart. She then confronts Clint about the vision with startling new information.

Tony reintroduced Kay to Jarvis. 

“Things have changed regarding Kay,” Tony tells him. “Kay is now on her way to becoming an official Stark. She is my daughter and your number one priority.” 

“Very well,” Jarvis acknowledges the command. “Good evening, Kay.” 

And Kay latched onto Jarvis. Tony had read through the papers that Fred gave Pepper and he knew how Kay’s mind worked but Kay didn’t mind when Jarvis was her eyes. 

So Tony connected Jarvis to an SI issued tablet and gave that to Kay and Kay took it everywhere she went. Kay would ask Jarvis to read to her constantly and Jarvis would happily oblige. 

Then came the press conference.

Kay still couldn’t be swayed to wear shoes so she wore a blue dress and white leggings and was upset she couldn’t bring Jarvis. She insisted on wearing sunglasses for the time being.

“You’re going to do fine,” Tony assures her. “If for any reason at all you need to leave, tug on my jacket three times and we can leave.” 

Kay nods and clings to his side tightly as he plasters on a grin and wraps an arm around her shoulders before stepping out before the crowd. 

They see Kay and they go wild. Tony lets them chatter amongst themselves for a few moments before he quiets them down. 

“We all know how wild I was when I was a teenager,” Tony starts. “I was the hottest thing since sliced bread and I was out of control. Well, it was bound to happen sometime.” 

Tony places a hand onto Kay’s red hair. “It was recently brought to my attention that I had a daughter. I had absolutely no idea about her existence until recently. I thought someone was pulling my leg. Me? A father? Get out.” 

Tony grin softens as he looks down at Kay. “You’re probably wondering why she’s with me now. Where on earth her mother went.” 

The crowd is silent, hanging on his every word. 

“Her mother abandoned her when she was diagnosed with schizophrenia and a seizure disorder. With her being blind since birth, her mother just couldn’t handle anymore and left her at a psych ward,” Tony feels Kay’s hand reach up to grab his coat. He waits for three tugs but they don’t come. “She is my daughter and I wasn’t going to leave her there. I took her out of the facility and officially adopted her. So, I want you to welcome to the world, Kay Stark.” 

Kay tenses up when the crowd goes wild, pushing herself further against Tony’s side. 

“You okay, buttercup?” Tony whispered. 

“It’s loud,” Kay mumbled back, curling her fingers into a portion of his jacket and gripping it tightly. 

Reporters chant over each other as they try to ask questions and Tony holds his hand up and the room goes silent. 

“I will answer three questions. You in the blue,” Tony points at a short pudgy man. 

“Daniel Forn, writer for Televised Life,” The man introduced himself. “Are you truly the best person to take care of a mentally ill disabled teenager?” 

“To be completely honest, probably not,” Tony replies. “But I am going to get all my ducks in a row and I am going to try my hardest to be the best.” 

Daniel nods and steps down. 

Tony points to a thin woman. 

“Arabella Jackson, NY News,” She sniffs. “If the child was put in a psych ward in the first place, why did you remove her? It seems to me that if she was put there then she should have stayed.” 

Kay looks up at Tony and tugs at him once. “Can I answer?” She whispered. 

Tony, having no clue what she was going to say, nods. 

Kay steps forward towards the microphone and it goes silent. 

“I didn’t like it there,” Kay’s voice was soft as she speaks into the microphone. “They tie me to the bed and they hit me and they hurt me.” 

Kay can feel the stares at her as she lifts the sunglasses from her face. “Dadai came and got me. He got me warm sweaters and books and he gave me ice cream. I’d never had it before. He doesn’t hurt me when I make mistakes or when I see things that aren’t there. He keeps me safe when I have seizures. I like him. I don’t want to go back.” 

Kay grips the podium and stares at the crowd with unseeing eyes. “He came for me and he didn’t have to.”

Kay steps back, pulling the sunglasses back down over her eyes as Tony’s hand finds her shoulder and gives it a squeeze. 

“One more question,” He calls out. 

There was a young reporter that was called on next. “Mr. Stark, you’re currently in a relationship with Ms. Virgina Potts. Has finding out your daughter exists changed your relationship?” 

“That is a very good question,” Tony nods. “I could not ask for a better woman than Pepper. I can’t answer for her but Kay is a puzzle piece that we didn’t know we were missing.” 

The press conference wraps up quickly after that and Tony walks with Kay off stage. 

“That was a great little speech,” Tony praised. “Think you could do that again for our interview with Christine Everhart?” 

Kay nods. “Yes.” She pulls off the sunglasses and gives them back to Tony. “Let’s go back. I want to read with Jarvis.” 

Tony laughs. 

* * *

“So my magical little eight-ball,” Clint takes a seat at the counter. “I’m heading off on a mission with Nat soon. Any news?” 

Kay looks up from where she was attempting to read braille. “Stick like glue.” 

“That has a thousand different meanings,” Clint points out. 

Kay shrugs. “Some things have to happen, even if I don’t like it.” 

Clint frowns. “Is someone going to get hurt?” 

Kay huffs and looks up from her book again. “Everything that has to happen will happen. If I can change it, I will.” 

“That’s not a no,” Clint points out. 

Kay closes her book and turns her full body towards Clint. “I have a timeline of seven years in my head,” Kay taps her head and Clint is surprised that she’s speaking in full sentences. “In seven years, The Mad Titan will come. I have seen so many different scenarios and variables. Some things are set in concrete and if I try to change them they’ll come out worse. Some things I can influence to guarantee the end result.” 

“So you’ve seen nothing after seven years?” Clint questioned. 

Kay shakes her head. “I see him come and then there is nothing. I do not force visions, I only see what I see.” 

“And you don’t see yourself,” Clint repeats what she told him early on. 

“If I have information that you need to know, you’ll get it,” Kay mumbles as she scoops her book and tablet up into her hands and stands, turning and walking out of the room. 

Kay heads down to Tony’s lab where she had taken to sitting on a couch and listening to Tony work. 

“Hey buttercup!” Tony chirps as she enters the lab. “Watch your feet.” 

Kay slowly makes her way to the couch, sinking onto it and listening to Tony as he mumbles variables and equations to himself. 

“Move the seven to the other side,” Kay comments when Tony lets out a frustrated growl. 

He blinks before looking at his equation again and sighing. “Right you are. Thanks.” 

“I am going to have a vision tomorrow,” Kay starts and Tony pauses to look up at her. “In front of Christine. I can’t see myself but she’s asking you what’s wrong with me.” 

“What should I do?” Tony questioned. 

“I don’t know what type I’m going to have,” Kay shrugs. “But hold onto me and talk to me. Fred did that.” 

“I can do that,” Tony nods. “Can you see the outcome of the interview with Christine?” 

A small smile quirks at Kay’s lips. “SI points go up.” 

“And you really don’t mind doing this?” Tony questioned as he starts to work again. “We don’t have to do anything you don’t want to.” 

Kay shakes her head. “I have to do things to make the outcome right.” 

“What outcome?” Tony inquired. 

“The end,” Kay shrugs. “I dunno.” 

Later at dinner, Kay had a vision. She pauses with a forkful of noodles halfway to her mouth and her finger go limp, the fork clattering onto her plate. 

She didn’t make any noise, just staring blank ahead as she breathes heavily. 

Tony remembers what Kay told him earlier and stands, moving to Kay’s side and pulling her chair back. 

“Hey,” Tony grips her shoulders. “Did I ever tell you about the time I first tried to make the suit and flew into and destroyed five of my cars?” 

Tony crouches in front of Kay, babbling as he gently grips her upper arms. 

Kay’s hand twitches and she blinks, reaching her hands up to touch Tony’s face. “Dadai?” 

Something within Tony goes soft at the title. “Yup. I’m right here, buttercup.” 

“I don’t understand,” Kay confesses. She brings her hands up to wave in front of her face. “Dust and it was hard to breathe. Screaming.” 

“It’s alright,” Tony stands, patting her leg. “Here’s your fork.” 

Nobody comments on her vision and dinner goes the same as usual. 

* * *

“No sunglasses today,” Kay shakes her head. 

“Whatever you say,” Tony nods. “You ready?” 

“No,” Kay confesses. “Oh well.” 

Tony lets out a bark of laughter at that and ruffles her hair. 

“Hey, I just styled that!” Pepper slaps his hand away and smooths Kay’s hair back down. 

“Remember. Three tugs and we’ll go,” Tony assures her. 

They enter the room where Christine was waiting. There was a video camera set up and Christine had her list of questions ready. 

Tony settles Kay in the seat next to him before taking a seat. 

“Thank you for the opportunity, Mr. Stark,” Christine smiled at him.

“You’re my favorite, Christine,” Tony grins back. 

“You must be Kay,” Christine looks to Kay. 

Kay nods. 

“Very nice to meet you, Kay. I’m Christine Everhart,” Christine introduces herself. “Shall we start?” 

They nod, and Christine immediately jumps right in. 

“How did you find out Kay was your daughter?” Christine questioned. 

“Would you believe if I said 23&Me?” Tony laughs. “Truth is I have markers set up if my DNA is ever released through hospitals and the public. You don’t want to know what fangirls will do. Markers went off showing parts of my DNA.” 

“It was an accident?” Christine elaborates. 

“I investigated and it lead me back to Kay. Did some more testing and congrats, it’s a girl!” Tony leans back in his chair. 

“Kay,” Christine turns her attention to the redhead sitting next to Tony. “How did you feel when you found out Tony Stark was your father and taking you away from the ward?” 

Kay shrugs. “Dunno. Never had a dad before. I was scared but they do things different.” 

“Like what?” Christine coaxed. 

Kay hesitates and Tony casually draped an arm across her shoulders. 

“They don’t take my food away,” Kay starts. “They don’t tie me down when I sleep. They don’t get mad when I see things or hear things.”

“Did those things happen at the ward?” Christine questioned. 

“I thought that was how things worked,” Kay fidgets. “I thought I was crazy and a burden and I was afraid he was gonna be the same.” 

“How has Tony played a role in your life as a father so far?” Christine inquired. 

Kay taps her hand on her leg as she thinks. “He bought me sweaters and they’re really soft.” 

“You practically wear nothing but sweaters,” Tony laughs. “I buy you pretty dresses and nope, you want sweaters.” 

“He gave me a tablet,” Kay begins. “He wouldn’t let me bring it.” 

“That tablet is practically an extension of her arm,” Tony tells Christine. “She rarely goes without it.” 

“How do you feel living with the Avengers?” Christine changes the subject. 

The tapping on her leg gets faster and Tony can hear her breath hitch but she pushes on. 

“I like them. They’re nice and funny and they help me.” 

“Mr. Stark,” Christine spins the attention back to Tony. “How has having Kay impacted the life of the Avengers?” 

“I can’t speak for them,” Tony starts. “But they love her. They love having her around and Kay really pushes for us to do team bond---” 

Kay’s hand darts out to grab Tony’s arm and Tony turns his attention to her. “Kay?” 

Kay gasps and her hand tightens and Tony immediately realizes that it’s a vision. 

Kay’s lower lip quivers as her breathing gets faster. “Stop it. Stop it.”

Tony moves to crouch in front of Kay again, grasping her upper arms again and talking. 

“He’s hurt, he’s hurt!” Kay sobs and Tony’s eyes flicker to the video camera set up. 

“Turn it off,” Tony hisses at Christine who was watching with wide eyes. 

She fumbles to turn off the camera as Tony continues softly talking to Kay. 

“He didn’t listen,” Tears roll down Kay’s cheeks. 

“It’s alright. You’re alright,” Tony makes a split moment decision to pull her out of her chair and into his lap. 

Close contact got him through rough panic attacks and if Kay said touching helps then he would hold her close. 

Tony looks back up at Christine. “Go on.” 

“Are you sure, Mr. Stark?” Christine was watching as Kay cries. 

“Just keep talking,” Tony instructs. “Keep the questions coming.” 

“Okay,” Christine fumbles with her notepad. “How has Kay’s presence impacted your relationship with Ms. Potts?” 

“Like I told the press earlier,” Tony starts, slowly rubbing his hand up and down Kay’s arm as she curls into his chest. “Kay just kinda fits. She gets us to open up in ways that we didn’t before. Pepper stayed even after we found out about her and has stepped up to help.” 

“Do you think that Ms. Potts will take up the mother mantle and be the female role model in Kay’s life?” Christine fumbles with her questions, trying hard not to look at Kay. 

“I don’t know, I’m not Ms. Potts,” Tony shrugs. “But Pepper is amazing and she’s really connected with Kay. Besides, Kay has the great Black Widow as her Aintin.” 

“Aintin?” Christine repeats. 

“That’s auntie in Irish Gaelic,” Tony informs her. 

“Kay is Irish?” Christine perks up. 

“As far as we know. She sure loves her potatoes,” Tony briefly looks down at Kay who has stopped crying and came out of her vision. “Isn’t that right?” 

“Potatoes are good,” Kay croaks. “Uncail Clint says we could live on ‘em.” 

“Well, if we all ate what your uncle Clint likes then we would be fat,” Tony informs her. 

Kay looks in Christine’s directions. “Uncail Clint doesn’t make me eat broccoli.” 

“Broccoli is good for you!” Tony defends. 

“You don’t eat it,” Kay jabs. 

“Do as I say, not as I do,” Tony pokes a finger at Kay’s side and she squirms with a small laugh. 

“Alright, Kay, this question is for you,” Christine starts. She hesitates for a moment and that gets Tony’s attention. “How do you think Mr. Stark has impacted your mental health issues and medical issues?” 

Tony straightens to blow Christine off but Kay sits up and taps his chest once. 

“You think what he did just now as not the right thing?” Kay questioned. 

“He continued the interview while you were in distress,” Christine counters. 

“Talking helps. Keeps me focused. Being held grounds me,” Kay starts. “Continuing with you helped me come back. So, Dadai helps a lot more than they did at the ward.” 

“And your seizures?” Christine pressed. 

“Absent seizures,” Kay comments. “I just stare at nothing and get confused. Sometimes I fall but someone always catches me before I do.” 

“You think Mr. Stark is the best person to take care of you?” Christine inquired. 

“Before him, I was in the ward,” Kay shifts to tuck herself more into Tony. “I didn’t like it there. I was… a number-- no, that’s not the right word… a statistic to be forgotten about. Dadai didn’t have to come and help me but he did and that was more than anybody has ever done for me.” 

* * *

When the interview ended, and they went back to the tower, Kay wandered off and nobody thought anything of it. 

Kay waits on the roof, tablet clutched in her hands as she stares at the area landing pad for the jet Natasha and Clint would come back on was. 

They come a few hours later and are startled to see Kay there, tears dripping down her cheeks as she clings to the tablet. 

“Kay, what are you doing?” Clint questioned as Natasha helped him out of the jet. 

“You’re hurt,” Kay’s voice was emotionless. “I told you to stick like glue.” 

“That could have a thousand meanings,” Clint points out. “But I’m okay.” 

Clint ducks in surprise when Kay chucks the tablet at him. “No! It’s not okay!” 

“Kay, what’s wrong?” Natasha moves forward. 

“You didn’t listen!” Kay jabs a finger in Clint’s direction. “I told you and you didn’t listen! The only reason you’re alive is you thought about what I said!” 

Clint and Natasha freeze. 

“I told you because I saw you die!” Kay continues, stomping her foot. “I try to change the outcome but I see you die! You die and I have to find out how to tell you because I can’t tell you too much without changing the future! You die and I can’t help you!” 

Kay breaks down in tears, bringing her hands up to cover her face as she sobs. Clint moves forward, careful with his injuries as he pulls Kay into his side. 

“I’m sorry, kiddo,” Clint mumbled. “I didn’t know that.” 

“You die all the time. Sometimes you change your mind and it changes the outcome but I still see you die!” Kay clings onto his vest. “I see all of you die!” 

Kay buries her face into his chest. “I saw Dadai die in New York with the wormhole. I saw Aintin Natasha die because Hulk squished her. I saw Uncail Steve die because Chituari stabs him. You die with Loki. You die and I can’t tell you.” 

“Shit, kid,” Clint sighs. 

Kay turns towards Natasha’s direction. “I see your cover blown and you die. Voices scream at me to tell you to be safe but I didn’t have any way to tell you.” 

Kay was frantic. “Listen! Please just listen! Please lis-” 

Kay’s eyes roll up and the sudden weight flopping onto Clint causes him to cry out in pain. 

Natasha darts forward to pull Kay’s weight onto her and lowers them gently to the floor. 

Kay reaches up to claw at her chest and Natasha’s arms snake around Kay to hold her arms to her sides as Kay cries out in pain. 

“How do I make it better?” Kay whispers, arms still clawing at her chest. “How do I help? It hurts. Please.” 

“Go to medical, I got this,” Natasha tells him. 

“Yeah. Sure,” Clint’s eyes trail from Natasha holding Kay to the shattered tablet on the ground a few feet away. 

The tablet was Kay’s most prized possessions and she broke it because he scared her. He hadn’t realized that she saw people die as much as she did. 

It was obvious that the rest of the team needed to know and Kay needed to have a direct line to each of them whenever they were out on a mission. 

Clint would be more careful and take Kay’s words to heart because he was not going to let Kay suffer at seeing his repeated death.

* * *

Christine’s story made the front page next to a full-sized image of Kay curled up in Tony’s lap, a shot when the camera was supposed to be off. The headline read: 

_ Dad Stark, Baby Stark, Mental Health and a Partridge in a Pear Tree: Kay Stark is finally home where she is meant to be _


	5. a ceathair

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Natasha held Kay when she broke and it was time for Kay to return the favor.   
Kay is just trying to prepare the Avengers for everything coming at them in the future.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> The song is 'Everything Stays' from Adventure Time, I do not own it.

“Jarvis,” Kay calls out before she gets into bed. 

“Yes, Kay?” Jarvis replies. 

“Wake me up at 3.47 AM, please,” Kay requests. 

“May I inquire as to why?” Jarvis questioned. “You should get a full eight hours of uninterrupted sleep.” 

“I know,” Kay mumbles. “I saw something.” 

“May I know what you saw?” Jarvis questioned. 

Kay shakes her head. “Can’t risk it. Just wake me up, please.” 

“Very well. An alarm has been set for 3.47 AM,” Jarvis replies. 

Kay moves into bed and shifts until her covers are pulled over her. She still felt weird not being tied down while she slept. 

She wakes up to Jarvis’s voice. 

“It is currently 3.47 AM, it is time to get up,” He calls out. 

Kay begrudgingly slides out of bed and moves towards the door. The best part about being blind was you didn’t need the turn on the lights at night. 

Kay gets into the elevator and yawns. “Take me to Aintin Natasha’s room, please.” 

The elevator moves and Kay hums a song she doesn’t remember where it came from. 

“Arrived,” Jarvis quietly announced as the doors open. 

Kay exits. “How do I get to her door?” 

Jarvis quietly instructs Kay how to maneuver to Natasha’s bedroom. Kay opens the door and walks in, shuffling towards where Jarvis told her the bed would be.

“Natasha,” Kay mumbled as she gets closer and can hear the twisting of the sheets and heavy breathing. “Aintin Natasha.” 

Kay reaches out and her hand finds the edge of the bed. She runs her fingers along it until it comes into contact with Natasha’s leg. 

The voices warn her of the danger and Kay’s hand snaps out to block the knife from connecting with her. 

“Kay?” Natasha whispers. “Oh god... I almost hurt you.” 

Kay pushes Natasha’s arm down. “I’m okay.” 

“Why are you here?” Natasha mumbled. 

“Because you need me,” Kay replies. “Give me your hand.” 

Kay outstretched her hand and it takes a few moments for Natasha to finally place her trembling hand into hers. 

Kay’s hand closed on Natasha’s fingers and her other hand comes up to brush against faint scarring on her wrist. “They tied me down too,” Kay softly comments. “I can’t see if you want to cry. It’s alright.” 

“Why are you here?” Natasha repeats her question. 

“I have to be,” Kay tells her. “Let me do my thing, okay?” 

Kay’s fingers use Natasha’s hand as a guideline as they trail up until they find Natasha’s shoulders. Kay moves to sit on the edge of the bed and loops her hands behind Natasha’s head, pulling her towards her. Natasha was tense but allows Kay to manipulate her. 

Kay guides Natasha’s forehead to press against her left shoulder. 

“Let’s go in the garden,” Kay softly sings. “You’ll find something waiting, right there where you left it, lying upside down.” 

Kay brings her right hand up to curl into Natasha’s hair and give her a grounding force. “When you finally find it, you’ll see how it’s faded. The underside is lighter when you turn it around.” 

Kay pretends she doesn’t feel the tears soak into her pajama top as she continues to sing. “Everything stays right where you left it. Everything stays but it still changes. Ever so slightly, daily and nightly, in little ways, when everything stays.” 

Natasha’s right hand finally moves up to grip the back of Kay’s shirt, her fingers curling into the fabric between Kay’s shoulderblades.

“Go down to the ocean. The crystal tide is rising. The water’s gotten higher as the shore washes out,” Kay continues. “Keep your eyes wide open, even when the sun is blazing. The moon controls the tide, it can cause you to drown.” 

Natasha’s left hand moves to Kay’s lower back and pulls her a little closer. Kay lets her. 

“Everything stays, right where you’ve left it. Everything stays, but it still changes. Ever so slightly, daily and nightly. In little ways, when everything stays.” Kay finishes but continues to hum the melody. 

Natasha’s grip eventually faltered and her fingers loosened. Kay keeps humming. The muscles in Natasha eventually relax. Kay stops humming and the fingers curl into her shirt again. 

“You should lay back down,” Kay comments softly. “C’mon Natasha.” Kay didn’t need Natasha to be ‘aintin Natasha’. She just needed Natasha. 

Natasha pulls her closer when Kay moves to pull back. 

“Okay,” Kay soothes. Her vision hadn’t gone much past the knife and she was working blind. “I’m gonna move into a new position, okay?” 

Kay pulls away again and shuffles on the bed to sit behind Natasha. She folds her legs and reaches for Natasha again. “Lay back.” 

Natasha does ask Kay asks and lays back until her head is in Kay’s lap and Kay’s hand finds Natasha’s hair, sliding her fingers through her hair. 

Kay leans back against the headboard of the bed and Natasha’s left hand subconsciously moves up and Kay gently grasps it, guiding Natasha to hold back onto her shirt again. 

Kay starts to hum again, her fingers occasionally moving down to Natasha’s cheeks to brush away the tears that fell. 

Natasha always tensed up when Kay touched her tears but Kay didn’t mention in. 

Kay hums until Natasha’s breathing evens out and Kay is sure that she’s fallen asleep. She stays completely still, her fingers continue to comb through Natasha’s hair. 

She isn’t sure how long she sits there. She doesn’t want to risk waking Natasha by asking Jarvis and she can’t see a clock so she sits and waits. 

She falls asleep at some point, her fingers tangled in Natasha’s hair as she rests her head on the baseboard of the bed. 

She wakes up a little when the warmth in her lap disappears and hands pull her sideways until she’s laying down on some pillows. Covers are pulled over her and Kay drifts back to sleep. 

The next time she wakes up, she’s disoriented at first because these sheets are different than hers. Silkier. Last night flashed in her mind and Kay is reminded that she’s in Natasha’s room.

“Good morning, Kay,” Jarvis greets her. 

“Hello, Jarvis,” Kay replies. “Where is Aintin Natasha?” 

“Ms. Romanoff is currently training. Shall I get her for you?” Jarvis informs her. 

“No,” Kay shifts. “I need you to be my eyes. How do I get out of here?” 

Jarvis instructs her on where the edge of the bed was before he guides her out of Natasha’s room and safely into the elevator. 

“Let’s go to the kitchen,” Kay tells him. “Anybody else there?”

The elevator moves and Kay’s fingers move to caress the side of her pajama top where it was wrinkled from Natasha’s hold. “Captain Rogers is in the kitchen,” Jarvis warns her so she isn't startled by him.

“Arrived,” Jarvis announced as the doors open and Kay moves into the kitchen. 

“Good morning, Kay,” Steve greets her. 

“Good morning, uncail Steve,” Kay replies. 

“Are you hungry?” Steve questioned. 

“Cereal please,” Kay tells him. 

She listens as Steve moves about the kitchen, setting the necessary things in front of her. 

“Will you watch a movie with me?” Kay questioned as she sticks a finger into her bowl and pours the milk until she can feel the cold on her finger. She adds the cereal next, using her finger as a guide again. 

“You… you don’t really watch movies, do you?” Steve comments a little awkwardly. 

“I listen to them,” Kay comments. “Please?” 

“Sure,” Steve agrees. “Do you have any movie in particular?” 

“Documentary,” Kay replies. “Jarvis said they have one about the Cold War.” 

“Cold War?” Steve repeats. 

Kay nods. “I like history. It helps me keep timelines straight.” 

“Alright,” Steve nods. “It sounds interesting.” 

Kay knew how behind on history Steve was. Steve wanted to look at popular things such as movies and fads but Kay knew he needed to know history. So she would watch documentaries with him and learn something new. She never knew when that information would come in handy. 

Kay curls up on the couch and listens to the documentary, occasionally making a comment on something that was said. When the documentary was over, Steve was quiet for a moment. “That happened two years after I was in the ice.” 

“Yeah,” Kay nods. 

“Are there other major events I should know?” Steve questioned. 

“The Korean War from 1951-1953,” Kay starts. 

“Hold on. Let me get a piece of paper,” Steve pulls out a small notebook from his pocket. “Okay. The Korean War.” 

“Supreme Court declares segregation unconstitutional in Brown v. Board of Education,” Kay continues. 

“Okay,” Steve frowns as he scribbles it down. 

“The launch of Sputnik in the beginning of the Space Race in 1957,” Kay starts to list, remembering when Fred would read any book he could get his hands on to her. “The Freedom Summer in Mississippi in… 1964, an attempt to register African-American’s to vote.” 

“Freedom Summer,” Steve copies it down. 

“Civil Rights Act, also in 1964,” Kay beings to list on her fingers. “The Voters Rights Act and the Immigration act, both of 1965.” 

“This is a lot,” Steve comments, his voice unsure. 

“This is important,” Kay counters. “Moon landing, 1969. Stonewell Rebellion that launched the gay rights movement.” 

Steve’s hand pauses. “Gay… rights?” 

“Times are changing, uncail Steve,” Kay comments. “The Gulf War, 1991.” 

“That’s a big time skip,” Steve notes. 

“It’s alright,” Kay promised. “9/11, 2001.” 

“9/11?” Steve repeats. 

“A terrorist attack that started “War on Terror” invasion in Afghanistan,” Kay briefly summarized. “Those are the big main points you need to know.” 

She can hear Steve huff in frustration. 

“We can watch more documentaries,” Kay offers. “Jarvis finds the best ones.” 

“Thank you, Kay,” Jarvis pipes up. 

“Yeah, thanks,” Steve nods. “It… it helps to have someone here with me to explain things I don’t understand.” 

“I may be blind but I have hidden knowledge of historical facts,” Kay quips. 

“How about I come to get you whenever I’m ready for the next documentary,” Steve suggests. 

“Okay,” Kay nods. “Gonna go see Dadai.” 

Kay stands and makes her way down to Tony’s workshop where she heads towards the path she knew took her to the couch. She wasn’t expecting the scrap metal on the floor and trips over it, landing hard on the ground. 

“Oh my god,” The blaring music goes silent. “Kay, I’m so sorry. Are you okay?” 

Tony rushes over to where Kay was pulling herself up in a sitting position. 

“You put it in my way,” Kay frowns. “I always take this path.” 

“I know. I’m sorry,” Tony sighed and Kay tilts her head at the stress in his voice. “Are you hurt?” 

“I think I cut my foot,” Kay tells him. 

“Let me see,” Tony’s hands gently grasp her ankle and Kay leans back and lets him inspect her foot. He doesn’t comment on the criss-cross of scars and Kay is a little thankful for that. 

“You sliced part of your heel open,” Tony tuts. “Dum-E fetch the first aid.” He calls out. 

Kay sits quietly as Tony patches her foot up. 

“Does it hurt?” Kay finally blurts a question that had been on her mind. 

“What?” Tony’s hand keeps wrapping her foot. 

“Your chest,” Kay elaborates. “Does it hurt?” 

Tony’s hand stills for a brief moment before he continues. “Nah.” Kay knew he was lying.

“I… I keep getting pain,” Kay tells him. “In my visions. Right here.” 

Kay moves a hand up to the middle of her chest. “It’s heavy and hurts with every breath.” 

Tony’s hand is no longer moving. “Am I causing you pain?” He finally questioned in a small voice. 

“Does it really hurt like that?” Kay questioned. “It… you need someone to look at it.” 

“No,” Tony immediately denies the suggestion. 

“Something--” Kay swallows. “Make another one.” 

Tony’s hand draws away from her foot. “Will I need another one?” 

Kay shrugs. “I … just… I need one.” 

“Why?” Tony questioned. 

“I don’t know!” Kay huffs. “I don’t know why. I just know that I need it.” 

“Here. Hold on a moment,” Tony stands and moves away from her and Kay moves to stand now that her foot was bandaged. 

“Careful,” Tony approaches again. “ Hold out your hand.” 

Kay holds out her hand and something cold and metallic is placed into it. “That is the second arc reactor I ever made. It’s old school in terms of technology but it’ll keep me alive if I ever need it. Also connected to the right powersource it could power something big for fifteen minutes.” 

“Thank you,” Kay mumbles. 

“Don’t lose it, buttercup,” Tony’s voice was teasing but Kay could hear the serious undertone. 

“I won’t,” Kay promised. “Lead me.” 

Tony wraps an arm around Kay’s shoulder and leads her to the couch where she wanted to sit. “I’ve got something for you. Sit tight.” 

Tony hurries back over to his workbench and Kay can hear him rattling around before he comes back. 

“This is a bracelet I made for you,” Tony announces. “Here.” Tony places the bracelet into Kay’s hand and guides her fingers over the middle. “This is a panic button. Press is three times and an alert will be sent out to all of us that you’re in danger and that you need help. Jarvis is also installed in the bracelet and will go wherever you take him, regardless of it you’re here or not. You’ll be able to speak with him should something happen and god forbid you’re kidnapped.” 

“Thank you,” Kay whispers, her fingers tracing over the metal chain. 

“There is also a tracker installed in that. We won’t use it unless we absolutely have to,” Tony promised. "You are my kid now and people are going to try and come for you to get to me."

“I trust you,” Kay mumbled. 

Tony clasped the bracelet onto her wrist. “Try it out.” 

“Jarvis?” Kay questioned. 

“Hello Kay,” Jarvis’s voice is softer as it comes from her bracelet. Kay smiles before looking up at Tony.

“I had another vision earlier,” Kay comments. “Of someone yelling at you. You didn’t tell me I have another uncail.” 

“What?” Tony questioned. “You don’t.” 

Kay shrugs. “He’ll come sometime tonight.” 

“Is he dangerous?” Tony questioned. 

“I just said he was my uncail. Do you plan on letting someone dangerous be my uncail?” Kay points out. 

“Right,” Tony nods. “Okay. You can stay here as long as you want but ask Jarvis to lead you out, we don’t want another accident.” 

Kay nods. 

* * *

Kay is sitting on the counter in the kitchen as Pepper bakes cookies. She’s listening to the sound of Pepper moving around and eating the leftover batter off the mixing spoon.

The elevator doors open and Kay pauses. 

“Where’s Tony?” A voice questioned. 

“Rhodey,” Pepper greets him. “He’s in his workshop.” 

Kay can feel the stare at her. 

“You must be the daughter that Tony neglected to mention to me,” Rhodey chuckles. “I’m James Rhodes but friends call me Rhodey.” 

“Kay… Stark,” Kay almost introduced herself using her old last name. “And I’ll call you uncail Rhodey.” 

She can feel Rhodey’s shock as Pepper chuckles. 

“Best go yell at Tony now,” Kay comments as she continues to lick the spoon. 

“Right,” Rhodey clears his throat. “I’ll see you later, Kay.” 

Kay sighs as the doors close. 

“Something wrong?” Pepper questioned. 

“I call Tony Dadai because that is what is expected. I call the others aintin and uncail because Tony told the world. You’re the only one that I don’t call anything,” Kay explained. 

“You don’t have to call me anything different if you don’t want to,” Pepper assures her. 

Kay bites her lower lip. “What if I wanted to?” 

“You can,” Pepper promises. 

“Can I call you mathair?” Kay questioned. 

“Mathair?” Pepper repeats, stopping in the middle of whatever she was doing. “That means?” 

“It’s Irish Gaelic again,” Kay confesses. “It means mum.”

Pepper was quiet for too long. 

“I’m sorry. That was stupid. Forget it, I’m sorry, I’m so sorr--” Kay is stopped when two hands fall onto her knees. 

“I am not mad at you Kay,” Pepper’s voice quivers. “Your statement startled me. If that is what you want to call me then… you can.” 

Kay places her hands on top of Pepper’s and slowly trails her hands up until she finds Pepper’s neck and then leans forward to loop her arms around her neck and hug her. 

“Help me down,” Kay feels a vision incoming and slides off the counter and unsteadily to her feet. 

The elevator opens and Tony exits with Rhodey. 

“Help me sit,” Kay mumbles, her head feeling fuzzy. 

Pepper guides her to kneel on the floor just in time for Kay to lose the function of her body and slump forward onto Pepper. 

“Woah, what’s wrong?” Rhodey questioned as they approach. 

“Talk to her,” Tony instructs. 

Pepper looks towards Tony for help. 

“Talk to her, Pepper,” Tony starts. “I can’t always calm her down. I’m right here. Try.” 

Pepper starts to talk, unsure of what to say. 

“Just tell her about your day or a funny memory,” Tony tells her. “Don’t overthink it. Give her something to focus on.” 

“Tones…” Rhodey starts. 

“We’ll talk in a moment,” Tony flaps his hand at him. 

Rhodey sighs but doesn’t talk. Pepper rambles to Kay about absolutely anything. 

Kay sucks in ragged breaths, one hand coming up to clutch at her chest. Tony knows that she’s having a vision about him and the reactor. 

“M--mathair--” Kay wheezes. 

“I’m right here, Kay,” Pepper promised. 

“K--keep watch,” Kay chokes out. 

“Keep watch of what?” Pepper coaxed. 

The arm that wasn’t clutching her chest moves to draw in the air. 

Skull. Tentacle. Tentacle. Tentacle. Tentacle. Tentacle. Tentacle. 

Kay is drawing the Hydra symbol in the air over and over again. 

Tony scrounges up a piece of paper and a pencil and taps it into Kay’s hand. “I need you to draw that for me, Kay.” 

He guides her hand to the paper and Kay starts to draw the symbol again. 

Kay’s hand goes limp and causes a large line of graphite to smear across the page as she curls into Pepper. 

Rhodey pulls the cookies out of the oven when the timer goes off because Kay was still curled with Pepper. 

“I smell cookies!” Clint announced as he enters the room with Natasha. “I hope you made those peanut but-” 

He pauses when he sees them on the floor. 

“Don’t stare,” Natasha hisses and she grabs his arm, jerking him around to sit at the island. She pauses when she sees the image Kay just drew on the island where Tony put it. 

Kay perks up and sits up, drawing in a large breath of air and letting it out. 

“You got some explaining to do Tones,” Rhodesy finally pipes up. 

Pepper helps Kay sit next to Clint and Natasha at the counter as Tony spills everything to Rhodey. 

“Why did you draw this?” Clint questioned between bites of a cookie he swiped. 

Kay shrugs. “I told you. I will only tell you what is necessary. Can’t change it.”

“This symbol belongs to a group of dangerous people,” Clint warns. “Please give us any information you can.” 

Kay hesitates, pulling apart the cookie placed in front of her. “Watch your back and keep your eyes open. Don't let a veil be pulled over your eyes." 

“Okay,” Clint would take the advice to heart. 

* * *

After Pepper helps her dress for the night, Kay was sitting in bed and listening as Jarvis read to her when her door opened. 

“Hey,” Natasha comments when Jarvis pauses his reading. 

“Hello,” Kay looks in her direction. “Did you need something?” 

Natasha approaches her. “Hold out your hands.” 

Kay holds her hands out, palms up. Natasha places something soft in her hands. 

“What is this?” Kay questioned, rubbing the fabric between two fingers. 

“A new pajama top. I stretched yours out last night,” Natasha tells her. 

“Thank you,” Kay smiles. “You didn’t have to.” 

“I could have hurt you last night,” Natasha quietly comments. 

“The voices warned me,” Kay comments as she fiddles with the shirt. “You won’t hurt me.” 

“You don’t know that,” Natasha argues. 

Kay’s head snaps up to look at her and she frowns. “I do know that. I know that you needed someone last night because if I left you alone then you would break your knuckles in the gym after you punch too hard. I know that if I didn’t introduce Steve to gay rights that he would make an inappropriate comment to a gay couple in public. I know that Clint is going to stay up until two in the morning on the rooftop because he’s thinking about Loki. I know things and I need you to trust me that I will do what is right.” 

“You are a child,” Natasha comments. “You shouldn’t have to.” 

“No, I shouldn’t,” Kay agrees. “But I can’t change it so you will need to meet me halfway. I hold the next seven years of the world in my hands and I need you to trust that I will make the right choices for the best possible outcome.” 

Kay reaches out towards Natasha until her hand finds Natasha’s arm. “I know plenty of people’s secrets and the outcome of their life within seven years.” 

“Do you know what I am in seven years?” Natasha questioned. 

Kay pulls her hand back. “I can’t see too clearly,” She tells her. “But you’re happy.”

“Swear?” Natasha questioned in a tiny voice. 

“I swear,” Kay nods. 

Natasha lets out a breath of air. “Goodnight Kay.” 

“Night aintin Natasha,” Kay mumbles as Natasha heads towards the door. 

Kay feels the fabric of the shirt until she finds the neck-hole. 

“Is it facing forward, Jarvis?” Kay questioned. 

“It is, Kay,” Jarvis replied. 

Kay pulls off her current shirt and fumbles until she pulls on Natasha’s new nightshirt. It was incredibly soft and Kay knew that it was Natasha’s way of expressing her gratitude for being there and keeping last night a secret. 

Kay falls into an uneasy sleep as she dreams of a golden gauntlet. 


	6. a cúig

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> When the tower is invaded, Kay has to push herself to keep her family safe.

Sometimes Kay doesn’t get visions or voices. She gets feelings. 

She just knows things sometimes. 

“Jarvis?” Kay mumbled. 

“It is currently 1.24 AM,” Jarvis informs her. “Are you having trouble sleeping?” 

Kay shakes her head and slides out of her bed. “I need to go see Dadai.” 

“You will not go back to bed until you see him?” Jarvis questioned. 

Kay nods and heads towards the elevator, the doors closing behind her as it starts to move. 

“Arrived to Sir’s floor,” Jarvis announced. 

“Guide me,” Kay tells him, holding up Tony’s bracelet to her ear so Jarvis can be quiet and speak to her through that. 

Kay heads into the bedroom and she can hear movement. She stops at the foot of the bed.

“Kay?” Pepper’s sleepy voice reaches her. “What are you doing up? Is something wrong?” 

“I don’t know,” Kay mumbles. 

Kay can hear Pepper push back the covers and start towards her. 

“What’s wrong?” Pepper questioned. 

“I don’t know,” Kay repeats. “I need to be here.” 

“You need to be here?” Pepper repeats. 

“I need to be here,” Kay nods. 

“And you don’t know why?” Pepper inquired. 

“No.” Kay tilts her head. “You don’t need me, do you?” 

“No,” Pepper replies a little hesitant. “I don’t think I do.” 

“And Dadai doesn’t need me,” Kay turns towards where she can hear Tony breathing. 

“No,” Pepper frowns. “Do you have to stand at the foot of the bed?” 

“No. I just need to be here,” Kay replies. 

“Come here,” Pepper wraps an arm around Kay and guides her towards the bed. She has Kay lay in the middle by Tony before she gets in after Kay. 

“If you need to be here then you can be here and be comfortable,” Pepper comments. 

“Thank you, mathair,” Kay mumbles. “Sometimes. Back then. I got a feeling I had to go somewhere and I couldn’t. So many bad things happen.” 

“You do not have to change every bad thing that happens, Kay,” Pepper informs her. 

“It feels like it sometimes,” Kay murmurs. “Sometimes… sometimes I wish I was normal. I don’t want to see visions. But then I think of what would have happened if I didn’t. Would you still be my mathair?” 

“There is no use dwelling on ‘what if’s,” Pepper reaches out to smooth some of Kay’s wild red hair back. “What matters now is that you’re with us, sweet girl.” 

“I don’t want to go back,” Kay whispered. “It hurt so much.” 

“You won’t go back,” Pepper promised. 

“They hurt my feet,” Kay continues. 

“Yeah?” Pepper remembers the criss-cross of scars on the bottoms of her feet. 

“I wasn’t allowed a cane. I had to find my way around. Every time I messed up and bumped into something they whipped the bottom of my feet with a ruler,” Kay lets out a breath of air. “It hurt to walk and it hurt to wear shoes. I had to learn quickly.”

“I’m sorry that you were hurt,” Pepper tells her. “That should have never have happened to you.” 

“Fred taught me little signs, you know,” Kay continues. “So he could come in and tell when I’d been hurt.” 

“What signs?” Pepper questioned. 

Kay reaches a hand up and flicks her wrist twice. “It’s like you hurt your hand and you’re waving the pain off. This means I’m hurt.” 

“Did you have a sign to tell him you were okay?” Pepper questioned. 

“This,” Kay spreads her fingers out and touches her thumb to her chest. “Means I’m fine.” 

Kay’s hand drops. “I feel funny.” 

Pepper sits up a little. “Funny how?” 

Kay sucks in a deep breath. “I’m supposed to be here.” 

“Right,” Pepper agreed, unsure of what to do. “How do you feel?” 

“Tony needs to wake up,” Kay mumbled, dropping her name for Tony. “He needs to wake up and I have to be here.” 

“Now?” Pepper questioned. 

Frustrated tears appear at the corners of Kay’s eyes. “I dunno. I’m sorry.” 

Pepper pulls Kay close. “It’s alright, sweet girl.” She leans over to wake Tony up. 

He’s confused because it was obviously dark outside and Kay was in their bed crying. 

“What’s wrong?” Tony questioned. 

“Jarvis,” Kay sniffled. 

“What about Jarvis?” Tony questioned before tilting his head up. “Jay?” 

It was quiet and Tony perks up. “Jarvis?” 

Tony quickly clambers out of bed at the silence, his eyes flickering towards the two. “Stay here.” 

“I have to be here,” Kay repeats. 

“Go,” Pepper pulls Kay closer and Tony heads out of the room. 

“Mathair?” Kay whispered. 

“I’m right here,” Pepper soothed. 

“Lock the door,” Kay replied. 

Pepper noticed the unfocused look in her eyes. She trusted Kay and let her go to head and manually lock the door. 

“Use the chair,” Kay continues. “Block it.” 

Pepper wasn’t sure what Kay was doing but the teenager’s hands trembled. She wasn’t sure how Kay knew of the chair in the room but grabs it, pushing it under the handle of the door. 

“Come here,” Kay beckons Pepper back. 

Kay’s face was focused and her breathing was slightly labored. 

“Kay?” Pepper questioned. “What’s wrong?” 

Kay shakes her head. “I have to be here.” 

“Kay,” Pepper gets closer and notices Kay’s eyes were flickering like she was seeing something Pepper wasn’t. 

“Are you… are you forcing visions?” Pepper questioned, the realization hitting her. Fred said she couldn’t force visions but perhaps she could but shouldn’t. 

Kay doesn’t answer her.”We have to hide.” 

Panic stirs in Pepper’s chest but she has to keep a level head. 

“Alright. Come on,” Pepper helps Kay out of bed but Kay’s legs are weak and trembling. “It’s alright.” 

There were surprisingly few places to hide in the room. Pepper decides on the closet. 

There is a pounding on the door and Kay frowns, eyes flickering again. 

Pepper pulls the closet door open and the door is busted off its hinges. 

Pepper shoves Kay into the closet and closes the door, her heart pounding dangerously in her chest. 

She can’t defend herself very well against the brute of a soldier that entered the room. He has a gun trained on her. 

“Where is the child?” He demands. 

“She’s not here,” Pepper spits. 

He moves closer and presses the barrel to her forehead and Pepper closes her eyes and takes a deep breath. 

The closet door bursts open and the man lets out a cry of pain as something collides with him. 

The gun clatters to the floor and Pepper realized that Kay had taken the heel of one of the stilettos in the closet and drove it through the man’s eye. 

“Come,” Kay grabs Pepper’s hand, stumbling over unfamiliar ground. 

“Kay, you’re bleeding,” Pepper comments as Kay tugs her. Kay has blood trickling from her nose, trailing over her lips before dripping off her chin.

“I know,” Kay nods, pulling Pepper faster. “Come. Come.” 

Kay’s hand is cold and clammy against hers. 

“Where are we going?” Pepper questioned. 

She realized that they were heading towards where Jarvis’s mainframe was. “Kay?” 

Kay stops in front of the door that only Tony could enter. She reaches out until her hand finds the wall and trails up to find the keypad. 

Her fingers trail over the numbers before she starts to punch in a long sequence of numbers. 

The keypad beeps green and the door slides open. 

Kay tugs Pepper inside and closes the door behind them, enabling the lock again. 

It was absolutely dark in the room and Pepper couldn’t see. “Kay?” 

“Stay there,” Kay instructs. 

Pepper listens as Kay fumbles around and there is the sound of metal being pulled and wires being ripped. 

She has to trust that Kay knows what she’s doing. 

A blue glow fills the room and Pepper sees an arc reactor in Kay’s hands, attached to the walls. 

Kay fiddles a little more before the lights turn on. 

“Go help Tony,” Kay calls out and Pepper assumes she’s talking to Jarvis. “Fifteen minutes until lights out again.” 

The arc reactor drops from Kay’s trembling hands and dangles by the wires it’s attached to.

“Kay?” Pepper hurries towards her. “You don’t look too good.” 

Kay waves a pale hand at Pepper. “I’m fine.” 

“You need to stop,” Pepper moves forward to grasp Kay’s chin and tilt her head up so that she can see Kay’s face in the light. “You’re hurting yourself.” 

“No,” Kay shakes Pepper’s hand off. “No… I need-- I need--”

“Kay,” Pepper pulls Kay to her as Kay sways and lowers them to the floor. “You need to stop. We’re safe.” 

Kay melts into Pepper’s hold, blood dripping onto Pepper’s pajamas and adding to the mess of blood on Kay’s front. 

“It’s alright,” Pepper reaches up a hand to card her fingers through Kay’s wild hair. “You did so well.”

“Sorry,” Kay whispers.

Pepper holds Kay until there is the sound of someone entering the code to the door and it slides open with a hiss. 

Pepper gets ready to protect Kay until the Iron-Man suit comes into view, the other’s trailing in behind them, clad in pajamas.

“Are you okay?” The suit folds back to allow Tony to come out. “Who’s blood is this? Are you hurt?” 

“It’s Kay’s,” Pepper replies. “She’s okay.” 

“Is she hurt?” Tony questioned, looking down at Kay. “She doesn’t look good.” 

“She’ll be okay,” Pepper promised. 

“Where did the blood come from?” Steve questioned. 

“There’s a man in the bedroom,” Kay mumbles, interrupting Pepper’s answer. “I hurt him.” 

“He’s still alive?” Clint questioned. 

“I hurt him,” Kay replied. “He was going to hurt mathair.” 

Pepper watches as Natasha and Clint nod at one another before heading off to take care of the man in the bedroom. 

“His name is Abraham Gaglow,” Kay whispers. 

Pepper then realized that the man wanted to know where Kay was. “Do you know him?” 

Kay sinks further into Pepper, a non-answer but a confirmation. 

“You did need the reactor, huh?” Tony questioned as he inspects the old model dangling from the wall. “How did you know how to connect it?” 

“I saw many different futures and picked the one that ended with me plugging it in,” Kay replies. “You have six minutes until the power goes off again.” 

Tony scurries to get the power back up again. 

“Uncail Steve?” Kay questioned. 

“Yeah?” Steve shifts. 

“You’re safe?” It was a question. 

“Yes. I’m safe,” Steve reassures her. 

“Dadai?” Kay directs her question to him. 

“I’m fine,” Tony flaps his hand at her despite the fact she can’t see him. 

“Uncail Clint?” Kay continues. “Aintin Nat?” 

“They’re both safe,” Pepper wasn’t sure of that fact but she knew Kay was trying to keep everyone safe and didn’t want to push her any further. 

Kay lets out a large breath of air. “Mathair?” Her voice is incredibly quiet. 

“Yeah?” Pepper questioned. 

“My head hurts,” Kay whispers the admission. “Sorry.” 

“Did you hit your head?” Clint appears in the doorway. “You could have a concussion.” 

Kay shakes her head. “No.” 

“Did something happen to your head?” Natasha enters the room. 

“Kay forced visions,” Pepper explained and Kay tenses in her arms and Pepper can sense the panic coming off of her. “I’m not mad at you, Kay.” 

“You exerted yourself, huh?” Tony questioned, finishing up and moving towards Kay. 

“They were going to hurt you,” Kay mumbles. “I had to protect you.” 

“It was very sweet of you to do but you shouldn’t have pushed yourself,” Tony reaches out to touch his girlfriend and kid. 

“But they were here for me,” Kay mumbles. “You were going to get hurt for me.” 

“Of course we were,” Tony scoffs. “You’re our kid. It’s our job to run headfirst into dangerous situations with little thought. You get to sit with Pepper and make fun of us.” 

His joke falls short. 

“I don’t want to go back,” Kay mumbled. 

“Were they from the ward?” Natasha questioned with confusion. 

“Yes…” Kay pauses before shaking her head. “No.” 

“Yes or no, kiddo,” Clint tells her. 

“They were from a different part,” Kay starts. “Before Fred. They would put me in a car and take me to a new place.” 

“They’re from the other place?” Steve questioned. 

“They knew I wasn’t nuts. They wanted me to draw. They wanted me to draw or they were going to hurt me,” Kay lets out a shuddering breath. “They wanted me to draw you, Dadai.” 

She could feel the focus shift onto her. 

“What happened?” Tony gently coaxed. 

“I couldn’t at first. I tried really really hard,” Kay looks in his direction. “They…” 

Kay frowns. “They did things that didn’t feel good.” 

“What kind of things?” Clint’s voice was wary. 

Kay shrugs in response. “They took me back when they were done. That came and asked me and hurt me and took me back. It kept happening.” 

“Did Fred know this was happening?” Pepper questioned. 

“I don’t know,” Kay shrugs. “I think he suspected it. That’s why he came up with the signals.” 

Kay shifts. “I’m sticky.” 

“Because you decided to bleed half of your body’s blood all over your pajamas,” Tony quips. “And all over Pepper.” 

Kay frowns. “Sorry.” 

“Clothes can be replaced, people can’t,” Pepper assures her. 

The reason Kay had the unexplained urge to go to Tony and Pepper’s room was not only to save Pepper but because her room was broken into. They knew which room she was supposed to be in and trashed it looking for her. 

“Aw, Kay,” Clint sighs when he sees her room. “There is no way you’re sleeping in there tonight.” 

Kay shrugs. “I’ll sleep with mathair and dadai.” 

Kay had almost slept there before the crushing feeling of something wrong woke her up. 

“Is my books okay?” Kay questioned. “Are they ruined?” 

Clint heads into her room and towards her art books full of sketches of the future. “They’re here.” 

“Good,” Kay lets out a sigh. “I shouldn’t have left them.” 

“You didn’t know that was going to happen,” Clint tries to soothe. 

“But they could have just taken the books and then I would have to try and change the future so that they didn’t try and interfere,” Kay points out. 

Clint’s hand falls onto her shoulder. “You are but a teenager, Kay. You don’t have to carry the weight of the world on your shoulders. We managed to keep ourselves alive before you came, we can do it again.” 

“But it hurts,” Kay mumbles tilting her head to look up at him. “I feel it sometimes. When you die. When you get hurt.” 

“All the time?” Clint questioned. 

“Sometimes,” Kay reaches towards him and places a hand against his lower right ribs where there was a scar from a few years ago. “This one hurt bad.” 

“You felt that?” Clint questioned in horror. 

“They tied me down because they thought I was faking because I wasn’t hurt but it hurt so bad,” Kay mumbles. 

Kay shakes her head, remembering what she came for. “Will you get a new set of pajamas please?” 

Clint nods, squeezing her shoulder and heading into her room to see if he could find a salvageable pair of pajamas. 

Clint finds a nightgown that wasn’t dirty with plaster from the wall that was broken down and heads back to Kay. 

“Who’s going to help you change?” Clint questioned. “Because I don’t want to give you this while you’re all bloody.” 

Kay shrugs. “Probably mathair.” 

“Jarvis, where is Pepper?” Clint questioned. 

“Ms. Potts is currently in the shower,” Jarvis relays. “Shall I let her know you were looking for her?” 

“Nah,” Clint knew that Pepper wasn’t used to the fighting scene and was washing blood off of her skin. “C’mon Kay, we’ll go find Nat.” 

Clint wraps an arm around Kay and guides them down to where he knew Natasha was. 

“Hey,” Clint greets her as he enters her bedroom. 

“Hey,” Natasha replies, raising an eyebrow. 

“Pepper is cleaning up and Kay needs help,” Clint explains. “And I’m a guy, so….”

“Yeah,” Natasha stands and makes her way towards him, accepting the nightgown from his grip. 

“C’mon, Kay. We’ll get you cleaned up in my bathroom,” Natasha places a hand on Kay’s back to guide her into the bathroom. 

“Come here,” Natasha moves Kay in front of the sink and places her hands on Kay’s sides. “I’m going to boost you up onto the counter. Jump on three.” 

Kay jumps when Natasha instructs and Natasha helps her slide back onto the bathroom counter with ease. 

“Are you okay to take off your shirt?” Natasha questioned as she turns the hot water on in the sink. 

Kay nods, pulling her shirt off and accepting the towel Natasha gave her to cover herself up. 

Natasha grabs a washcloth and dips it into the hot water, wringing it out and moving to Kay. 

“Keep still,” Natasha instructs, raising the cloth up and started to clean the blood from Kay’s face. 

Kay was quiet and still, letting Natasha do her thing. 

“How are you doing?” Natasha questioned. She saw the man in the bedroom who was missing his eye. She doesn’t know if Kay knew how much she hurt him. 

“I’m fine,” Kay replies. “Tired.” 

“Pepper told us that you forced visions. How does that work?” Natasha questioned, washing the blood from the washcloth and rewetting it. 

“I pick a specific point in the future that I’ve seen,” Kay starts. “And I focus on where I am now and how I need to get to that point. I have to focus really hard and shift through varying outcomes and then shift my actions to guarantee those outcomes.” 

“How many outcomes did you see for tonight?” Natasha questioned. 

“Two hundred and forty-six,” Kay replies and Natasha’s hand stills from where it was wiping blood from Kay’s neck. 

“You forced two hundred and forty-six visions?” Natasha frowns. 

“No. I forced more than that. I only saw those outcomes though,” Kay replies. 

“How many visions did you force?” Natasha inquired. 

“I always looked a few seconds ahead in the future. I had to deem where it was safe and how best to help everybody,” Kay explained. “So it was more of a constant forced vision with varying outcomes.” 

“Did it hurt?” Natasha coaxed. 

“Not really,” Kay admits. “It used to make it feel like my eyes would melt out of my skull but now it’s just a dull throbbing.” 

“You bled a lot, Kay,” Natasha points out, cleaning the cloth again. 

“I always bleed when I force visions,” Kay mumbled. “I try not to do it but I was scared.” 

“Did you see different outcomes with the man in the bedroom?” Natasha questioned. “Gaglow.” 

Kay’s face drops. “Yeah.” 

“Do you want to talk about it?” Natasha inquired, moving to clean the blood off the top of Kay’s chest where it soaked through her shirt. 

“He had a gun to mathair’s head,” Kay starts. “He shot her.”

“In your vision?” Natasha wanted to make sure she was understanding correctly. 

“Yeah. He shoots her in the head and he finds me. So I had to find a weapon. The first two things I found wouldn’t have hurt him enough to let her go and we both would have been shot but I would have still been alive,” Kay explained. 

“So you had a constant vision a few seconds ahead in the future and had to make split-second decisions to pull the outcome in your favor?” Natasha wipes away the last of the blood. 

“Yes.” Kay nods. 

“That sounds hard,” Natasha comments, standing back to make sure she got all the blood off of Kay. 

“It was at first,” Kay nods. “But it’s easier now.” 

“You shouldn’t do it too much,” Natasha nods, satisfied that she got every bit off and reaches for the nightgown. 

“I try not to use it but the voices were screaming,” Kay mumbles. “She’s going to die. She’s going to die.” 

Natasha couldn’t imagine hearing voices and having visions but also being blind. 

“You saved her,” Natasha bunches the nightgown up to make it easier. “Arms up.” 

Kay lets Natasha slide the nightgown over her head. “Aintin Nat?” 

“Yeah?” Natasha questioned, tugging the nightgown until it was straight. 

“I love you,” Kay quietly says. 

Natasha bites down the retort to say ‘love is for children’ but she should have guessed that Kay saw an outcome where she said that. 

“They were wrong,” Kay declares. 

“Love is for children,” Natasha repeats what had been ingrained into her memory. 

Kay reaches out until her hands finds Natasha’s shoulders and she pulls Natasha closer. “Well, I’m a child. And I love you.” 

Kay always seemed to know what to say. Natasha places her hands on either side of Kay to help her off the counter but Kay holds on to her a few seconds longer. 

“Thank you,” Kay mumbles before letting go and shimmying out of her pajama bottoms from under her nightgown. “Jarvis, where is mathair?” Kay questioned. 

“Ms. Potts is finishing up her shower,” Jarvis relays. 

“Guide me,” Kay commands before looking up at Natasha. “Goodnight, Aintin Nat.” 

“Goodnight, Kay,” Natasha quietly replies as Kay exits the room.

  
  
  



	7. a sé

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Clint gets roped into helping Kay after she gets a vision of Maria Hill dying.

“Uncail Clint?” Kay exits the elevator that accessed the rooftop, moving forward. 

Cold wind seeps into her pajamas as she moves towards the edge where Clint was. 

“Uncail,” Kay mumbled. 

“Kay?” Clint’s voice was hoarse. “What are you doing?”

“I had a vision,” Kay starts. “I need you to take me to Shield.” 

She can feel Clint look towards her, mind forgetting about his latest nightmare. “Why?” 

“Maria Hill,” Kay starts. “I have to change her fate.” 

“Maria?” Clint repeats. “Why? What happens?” 

“She goes into the field soon,” Kay starts. “Undercover. Her cover gets blown, she gets found out and shot between the eyes after she’s tortured.” 

“You saw that?” Clint repeats. “Her being tortured?” 

“Bits,” Kay admits. “I don’t know why I saw her. I haven’t seen her before but I know about her now and I have to look out for her too.” 

“And I can’t relay the information for you?” Clint questioned. 

“She won’t believe you,” Kay shakes her head. “You have to get her alone and Nick Fury can’t know about me yet.” 

“So you have to reveal yourself to Maria but not Fury?” Clint double-checked.

“Yeah.” Kay nods. 

“And she’ll believe you?” Clint inquired. 

Kay nods. 

“Okay,” Clint sighs. “I’ll take you later on today.” 

“You should go back to bed,” Kay comments. 

“No,” Clint shakes his head. “I probably won’t get back to sleep.” 

Kay hums and moves closer, hands finding the ledge and she hoists herself up.

“Careful!” Clint’s hands dart out to pull her closer to him. “You could fall!” 

“I won’t fall,” Kay tells him with such certainty that his grip loosens. 

“Is that all you came up here to tell me?” Clint sighed. 

Kay was quiet for a moment and Clint turns to look at her. 

“It’s okay…” Kay starts. “To be afraid. To be scared that you’re not in control.” 

“What are you talking about?” Clint frowns. 

“You came up here because you had a dream about New York,” Kay tells him. “The things you did under Loki. He’s not in your head anymore.” 

“How do you know?” Clint demands. 

“I can check,” Kay offers. “I’ll look a week into the future and see if you develop any sudden need to murder us.” 

“Doesn’t forcing visions hurt?” Clint questioned. 

“No,” Kay shakes her head. “But if it will make you feel better then I’ll do it.”

Clint’s grip loosens more. He didn’t want to ask that of Kay because it wasn’t fair to her for him to use her to quell his panic. But if Loki was somehow still in his head, Clint didn’t want to hurt her. 

“Okay,” Clint nods. 

“Hold onto me, okay?” Kay moves to snuggle into his side and his grip tightens as Kay takes a deep breath and her body molds along his as she relaxes. 

Clint watched as Kay’s milky blue eyes rapidly move as she sees things that aren’t there. It takes a few moments before Kay stiffens and sits up straighter.

“We’re all still alive in a week,” Kay promised. “You don’t hurt anybody you don’t want to.”

“You’re bleeding,” Clint reached out to touch the bead of blood that dripped from her nose. 

“I’ll be okay,” Kay tells him. “Did that help?” 

It did help to know that he had at least one week of no mind control. 

“Yes. Thank you, Kay,” Clint pulls Kay closer. 

“You’re welcome,” Kay doesn’t go back downstairs and chooses to sit with Clint. 

It was quiet and Clint could feel Kay’s head eventually drop onto his shoulder as she falls asleep and he holds her closer so she won’t fall. 

Her presence and the warmth she emits was comforting to him. The steady rise and fall of her chest as she trusts him to protect her while she sleeps. 

He eventually pulled her up and climbs back over the edge once he can feel Kay’s skin turn cold and his head is a little clearer. 

He knew that he shouldn’t move Kay while she was sleeping but he didn’t want to wake her after she spent hours sitting with him when she should have been sleeping. 

He carries Kay bridal-style and the elevator automatically opens for him. 

“Where is Kay sleeping?” Clint questioned. 

“Young miss is sleeping in the guest bedroom by Sir’s room,” Jarvis directs. “Shall I take you there?” 

“Yes,” Clint confirms. He thought it was funny that he only called Kay her name to her face but to everyone else she was ‘young miss’. 

The elevator descends and Kay’s head lolls onto his shoulder, soft puffs of air escaping her mouth and Clint finds her soft breathing soothing. 

The elevator opens and shoots upright, nearly toppling out of his arms. 

“Woah, hey, Kay, it’s alright,” Clint has to pull her limbs close to him so that she doesn’t hurt herself. “Kay. It’s Clint. You’re in the elevator. You fell asleep with me on the roof.” 

Kay reaches up and her fingers find his face and she relaxes a little. “Please don’t make me sleep by myself.” 

“What’s wrong?” Clint questioned. 

Kay reaches up to wrap her arms around his neck. “I’m scared.” 

“Scared of what?” Clint doesn’t exit the elevator. 

“Of the men that came,” Kay replies. “What if they find my room again?” 

“Did you see something?” Clint questioned. 

Kay shakes her head, tucking her face into his shoulder. “It’s stupid. I didn’t see anything but I’m still scared.” 

“Just like I’m allowed to be afraid of not being in control, you’re allowed to be scared of the men that broke in,” Clint mumbles as though it was a secret. “I won’t tell anyone you’re afraid if you don’t tell them I’m afraid.” 

“Okay,” Kay nods into his shoulder. “Please don’t make me sleep by myself.” 

“Alright,” Clint looks up at Jarvis. “Take us to the living room.” 

The doors close and the elevator goes back up and Kay lets out a shuddering breath into his neck. 

The doors open and Clint exits, moving into the living room. “Lights on low.” He calls out. 

Jarvis turns on the lights and creates a soft yellow glow in the room and Clint sets Kay down on the couch. 

“Stay here. I’ll be right back, okay?” Clint questioned. 

“Don’t leave me!” Kay’s hands dart out to grab his shirt. 

“Hey, I’m not leaving you,” Clint places his hands over hers and gently squeezes. “I am going to the kitchen to get us a drink. I’ll be back.” 

Kay was breathing heavy but her fingers slowly uncurl and lets Clint go. 

“How about I hum so that you can hear me?” Clint suggests. The kitchen was right next to the living room. 

Kay nods and Clint thinks of a song. He decides on some catchy jingle he heard during a commercial on television. 

He hums loudly and moves into the kitchen, starting on grabbing drinks. 

He starts to sing it out loud with a ‘da, da, da’ as he waits for milk to boil. 

He sings the stupid jingle until he has the drinks and moves into the living room. 

Kay was curled up on the couch, knees pulled to her chin as she stares at nothing. 

“Hey, scooty your booty,” Clint sits onto the couch next to her. “Hands out. I have a hot drink.” 

Kay moves her hands out and Clint carefully hands the mug over before wrapping an arm around her shoulder and letting her lean into him.

“Jarvis, turn on the television to something funny,” Clint calls out. 

The television turns on and Clint recognizes the reruns of Scooby-Doo. 

Clint sips his drink and Kay drinks hers and they just listen to the cartoon. 

Kay slowly starts to relax and he takes her mug when she’s finished to set it on the coffee table. 

Kay starts to fall asleep and Clint gently moves her so that her head was in his lap and he gently runs his fingers through her hair. 

“Go to sleep kiddo. I’ve got you,” Clint soothes and Jarvis automatically turns the volume on the television down a few notches. 

Clint ends up falling asleep a little later, leaning his head back and closing his eyes. 

He wakes up when something soft drapes over him and he cracks open one eye. 

It was Pepper and she gives him a small smile. “Go back to sleep.” 

Clint looks down at Kay who had buried her face into his stomach but was much calmer. Pepper had already pulled a blanket over her. He eyes the clock on the wall that flashes 5.45 AM. 

He closes his eyes and listens to Pepper move about and quietly scold everyone that comes up to be quiet. 

Kay starts to stir a little bit later before she jolts upright in confusion. 

“Kay,” Clint sits up and touches her shoulder. “We’re in the living room. We fell asleep watching cartoons.” 

Kay relaxes and flops back down into his lap. “We have to go soon.”

“Go?” Clint repeats. 

“To see Maria,” Kay frowns. “You said you would take me.” 

“I did and I will,” Clint promised. “We’ll go later.” 

Kay sighs. “I’m sorry for panicking. I was being stupid.”

“You weren’t being stupid,” Clint lightly chides. “Was I being stupid on the roof?”

Kay shakes her head. 

“Then you aren’t being stupid. It’s okay to be afraid to be alone,” Clint’s hand finds her head again and he slowly starts stroking her hair. 

“But I was being silly. I shouldn’t be afraid,” Kay protests. 

“You can’t compare trauma, Kay,” Clint tells her, watching her eyes seemingly glance to him. “Men broke into your room with the intent to hurt you. It’s okay to be scared.”

“But I’m not supposed to be scared,” Kay protests, tears gathering at the corners of her eyes. 

“Says who?” Clint inquired softly. 

“The Matron,” Kay whispers, reaching up to furiously scrub the tears away. “We can’t cry. We can’t get scared. We have to keep quiet or get punished.” 

“You know that we’re not going to punish you for showing emotions,” Clint sighs. “Sit up. Come here.” 

Kay sits up in confusion and Clint pulls her over onto his lap. 

“You are allowed to feel whatever you want,” Clint mumbles. “If you want to cry, you can scream and sob. If you want to get angry, you can yell and lash out. If you feel lonely, you can see out our company. You are in control. We are not the ward. I am not the Matron.” 

“What if I do something bad?” Kay questioned, no longer scrubbing the tears off her face. 

“Nothing you can do will be unforgivable,” Clint tells her. “We will discuss it if you do. We’ll talk about why you did something bad and what we can do in the future instead. We will not hit you. We will not tie you down. Do you understand me?” 

Clint looks up and notices Pepper in the doorway, watching them with wide eyes with a plate of breakfast in her hands. 

“I think I understand,” Kay nods. “But I…” 

“What?” Clint coaxed. 

“I’m confused,” Kay admits. “And scared.” 

“Of what?” Clint inquired. 

“The future,” Kay mumbles. “Trying to keep you safe. Changing the variables.” 

“You can be scared. Remember that you don’t have to do it alone,” Clint promised. 

“I’m sorry,” Kay whispers. 

“Don’t be sorry for showing emotion,” Clint soothed. 

Kay wipes her face on her pajama sleeve and Pepper finally entered. 

“Good morning, sweet girl,” Pepper greets her. 

Kay sits up and slides off of Clint’s lap as though she was afraid of getting caught doing something she wasn’t supposed to do. 

“Hi,” Kay mumbles. 

“I brought you breakfast,” Pepper moves to sit next to Kay and hands her the plate, describing what was on it and where it was on the plate. 

Kay leans on Pepper’s shoulder as she eats and Pepper gently strokes Kay’s hair with a soft smile on her face. 

“I’m going to take Kay out today,” Clint tells Pepper. 

“Where are you going?” Pepper questioned. 

Clint wasn’t ready to admit he was taking Kay to Shield because he knew that she didn’t like Shield after everything that happened with Tony. 

“I wanted to take Kay to the park for special Uncle time,” Clint grins and he pokes a finger into Kay’s ribs. “I’m gonna be the favorite uncle at the end of the day.” 

“Nope,” Kay shakes her head. “Uncail Rhodey is my favorite.” 

“You met the man once!” Clint exclaimed. 

“And he is my favorite,” Kay solemnly nods. 

Pepper can’t help the snort of laughter that escapes her at the indignant look at Clint’s face. 

“See, you say that now but wait until the end of the day and then we’ll see,” Clint grins. 

“We have a long day ahead,” Kay sighs and Clint could tell that Kay had seen something. 

* * *

Because Kay refused to wear shoes, Clint carries Kay into Shield headquarters on his back. 

Kay had pulled on a hoodie and jeans and wore sunglasses and a hat to hide her hair. 

Clint thought she could pass for either gender but Kay waved him off. She didn’t care. 

Baby agents stare as Clint moves through the halls. 

Clint stops in front of an office and knocks. 

Maria Hill opens the door with a glare that turns to confusion. 

“Agent Barton?” Her eyes fall onto Kay. “Who’s the boy?” 

“Girl,” Clint corrects. “May I come in to talk to you, Commander?” 

Maria moves out of the way and Clint moves into the room, setting Kay onto her feet. 

“What is going on?” Maria demands as she reclaims her seat and Clint steers Kay towards the chairs. 

Kay stops and puts her hand into her pocket, pulling out a folded piece of paper and holding it out to Maria. 

Clint hadn’t realized how comfortable Kay had gotten around them. He noticed she had been quiet but he didn’t think she would revert to being non-verbal. 

“What is this?” Maria demands. 

“I don’t know,” Clint confesses. “You should take it.” 

Maria raises an eyebrow and takes it from Kay, unfolding it. 

Her eyes narrow and her head darts up to look at Kay. “Where did you get this?” 

Kay shrugs and takes a deep breath. “You are Commander Maria Hill. You were born on April 4, 1982. You are second in command and trained in forms of boxing, Shotokan karate, and combat shooting. You have a cat named Liho and you can’t keep flowers alive so you raise cacti.” 

“You can’t just unload information on people like that,” Clint grabs Kay’s shoulder. 

“What the fuck is going on, Barton?” Maria demands. 

“This is Kay Stark,” Clint starts and Maria’s glare whips to him and he cowers a little. 

“Stark?” Maria replies. “I had assumed Stark was screwing with the public.” 

“Nope,” Clint shakes his head. “This is Kay Stark and she is… enhanced. 

“Enhanced?” Maria repeats. 

“Kay sees the future,” Clint tells her. “She has visions and manipulates outcomes based on what she sees.” 

“Stop screwing with me Barton or you’ll be on paperwork duty for a month,” Maria hissed. 

“I’m not fucking around!” Clint snaps before he realized that he was yelling. “I’m sorry for shouting, Commander.” 

Clint looks towards the drawing. “What did she draw?” 

Maria passes the drawing towards him and Clint frowns. 

It was a charcoal sketch of Maria laying on the floor of an empty room, a pool of blood under her and a single gunshot wound between her eyes. 

“I don’t understand,” It pains Maria to admit it. 

“Kay insisted we come here because she saw a vision with you in it,” Clint tells her. 

Maria turns towards the teenager rocking on her feet. “Tell me more.” 

“You’re going to Texas undercover in three days,” Kay mumbles. “You slip up and your cover is blown. They torture you for information but you don’t crack. They decide you are a liability and kill you.” 

“That’s not good enough,” Maria shakes her head. “Give me more.” 

Kay grimaces. She was quiet and rocked on her feet.

“Hey,” Clint recognizes what she’s doing after a moment. “Kay, stop!” 

Clint grabs Kay’s shoulder and pulls her sunglasses off of her face to see her eyes. 

“Don’t force visions!” Clint scolds. “You’re hurting yourself.” 

Clint knew that she lied to him when she told him it didn’t hurt. 

Kay lets out a ragged breath. “You’re going because they have information on a man you’ve been chasing… Thomas Lively. He’s wanted for terrorism and he’s a suspected Hydra agent. You’re going under as Carla Hallow, an assistant to a chemical pharmacist to arrange for an illegal chemical trade.” 

Maria was quiet as Kay finished. 

“Don’t force visions,” Clint admonishes as he grabs a tissue and pinches Kay’s bleeding nose.

“Stark’s daughter sees the future. I fail my next mission and I die and she came to… warn me?” Maria repeats as she reaches up to pinch the bridge of her nose. 

Kay reaches out towards Maria. “I know that you don’t believe me right now. Doubt is filling your mind and you’re wondering if Clint finally lose his marbles and needs therapy. You want to go to the director and bring it up with him.” 

Kay’s fingers curl into a fist. “You tell the director and he sends men to Tony. They come and they take me away and they put me in the cells on the sublevel floor. The men come and take me away. They find me and I don’t fight back this time.” 

Kay’s hand was shaking and Clint frowns. “The men from the tower?” 

“Watch your backs,” Kay repeats what she told him. “Don’t let the veil be pulled over your eyes.” 

“You’re saying we have a mole,” Maria concludes. 

“You have many,” Kay shifts to look at Maria. “Keep quiet. Nothing is wrong for now. Keep quiet or else you’ll speed the process up.” 

“Wait, hold up,” Clint tugs Kay’s head up to look at him. “You’re saying Shield has been compromised?” 

Kay nods. 

“This is a matter of national security,” Maria growls. “And you want me to say nothing?” 

Kay whirls towards her and slams her hands onto the desk. “You say something and so many people die! Covers are blown, agents are killed, their families tortured! Please! Please!” 

Kay starts to tap the desk with her fingers. 

“Agent Manny, died by a single gunshot wound to the head. Agent Parez, killed by waterboarding. Agent Allens, tortured for three days before he succumbs to blood loss. Agent Thane, he and his family are killed,” Kay was listing deaths or agents still out on the field. Agents Maria knew Kay had never met before. 

“Agent Gomez, gets her arm cut off and gets rescued but retires with a prosthetic. Agent Callem, dies with four others in a grenade explosion--” Kay keeps going. 

“Okay, I understand!” Maria’s sharp voice breaks through Kay’s monologue. “There is no way you could have known that information.” 

“Don’t go on the mission,” Kay softly states. “Stay here. Keep your eyes peeled and watch your back. Don’t trust anybody but yourself.” 

“You can’t just tell me this and leave,” Maria reaches towards Kay. 

Kay flinches away from the hand. “Come by the tower if you need to see me. Tell them you’re there for paperwork with either Clint or Natasha.” 

Clint isn’t sure if he likes the way Kay detaches their ‘uncail’ and ‘aintin’. 

Maria lets out a sigh and sinks back into her chair. 

Kay approaches, reaching out and touching Maria’s shoulder. 

Clint was surprised because Maria let nobody touch her and if they did then they would suffer. 

“Trust yourself,” Kay tells her. “Go with your instinct.” 

Maria sighs and nods. “Okay.” 

“Okay?” Clint repeats. 

“Okay. I have no clue what is going on but I’ll roll with it for now,” Maria mumbles. 

“Thank you,” Kay smiles. “And when the time comes, trust Tony.” 

“What?” Maria questioned but Kay had turned and was already walking out of the office. 

“Sorry,” Clint blurts to Maria. “Listen to her and come by if you need anything.”

Clint hurries after Kay down the hall and Maria sighs before picking up her phone to request a mission transfer. 

  
  
  



	8. a seacht

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> After a vision, Kay sets out to the streets of New York along in the early morning as she sets on a mission to make sure her vision doesn't come true. 
> 
> TW: Mentions of sexual abuse of a minor

Kay Stark does not do things halfway. 

Kay Stark does not ask for help most of the time. 

Kay is used to dealing with her visions along and having nobody listen to her. So when she sets out to change things, she will not tell anybody what she is doing. She asks Jarvis to keep quiet so that the future doesn’t change and he protests but does as she asks. 

Kay Stark leaves the Avengers Tower at two in the morning. She dons the same disguise she used when meeting with Maria and sets upon her task. 

Her fingers trail across the buildings as she walks, careful not to fall or bump into people. Jarvis helped her know when it was okay to cross the street. 

Kay’s feet take her to the set of her most recent vision. Her fingers find the pin pad and entered the eight-digit code needed and the gate unlocks. Kay enters the building and gets into the elevator, fingers finding the button for the second floor. 

She exits the elevator and slowly moves down the hallway until her fingers find the correct number on the door. 

Kay knocks on the door three times and waits. 

It takes a moment for the door to be unlocked before it opens. 

“Please don’t shoot me,” Kay replies in lieu of greetings. 

“Stark?” Maria’s incredulous sleepy voice questioned. “What the hell? Why are you here?” 

Maria leans out to look in the hallway. 

“Did you-- did you come here by yourself?” Maria questioned. 

Kay nods. 

“Jesus Christ,” Maria’s hand moves forward and grabs some of Kay’s hoodie and pulls her inside, closing and relocking the door behind her. “How did you even know where I live?” 

Kay taps her head and was quiet for a moment. 

“Did you come here for a reason?” Maria’s voice sounded tired and Kay digs into her pocket, pulling out another sheet of paper and holding it out for Maria. 

Maria takes it after a few moments and unfolds it. 

“You saw this?” Her voice was tiny.

“Fates insist upon your demise,” Kay rocks on her feet. “I came to make sure you live the night.” 

Maria looks down at the drawing of her bleeding out on her living room floor. 

“Do the others know where you are?” She sounds faint. 

Kay shakes her head. “No.”

“Fuck,” Maria places the picture down and reaches up to cradle her head in her hands. “They’re going to think I kidnapped you. They’re going to think I kidnapped the Stark heir.” 

“Jarvis knows,” Kay replies. 

“Jarvis?” Maria repeats. 

“He helped me get here,” Kay replies, holding up her bracelet. “He can tell them where I am when I say it’s okay.”

Maria lets out a hard breath of air, panicking a little. 

“I came because if I called then you wouldn’t answer,” Kay tells her. “You’re important. I can’t let you die.” 

“Okay,” Maria mumbles. “Okay. Come and sit. We need to talk.”

“I don’t know my way around your apartment,” Kay replies. 

“Shit. You’re blind,” Maria groans. “How the hell did you walk here then?” 

“Jarvis,” Kay repeats. 

Maria leans out and grabs a handful of Kay’s hoodie again, pulling her in and pushing her onto her couch. 

“You stay,” Maria points a finger at her even though Kay wouldn’t see it. “I’m going to call and let them know you’re not dead.” 

Maria grabs her phone and pulls up her contact, bringing it up to her ear as it rings. 

“Pepper Potts,” Pepper’s sleepy voice answers the phone. 

“Hello, Ms. Potts. It’s Maria Hill. I apologize for the late hour. Do you know where Kay Stark is?” Maria questioned. 

It was quiet for a moment. “...Kay?” 

“Yes, Kay Stark. The teenager,” Maria rolls her eyes. 

“She’s in bed…” The reply was slow. “Why? What’s wrong?” 

“Are you sure she’s in bed,?” Maria questioned. 

“Why wouldn’t she be in bed?” Pepper questioned and Maria could hear Tony waking up. “Maria?” 

“Go look,” Maria urges. Perhaps they would learn to have better protocols in place so their blind future-seeing teenager wouldn’t wander the streets without their knowledge. 

Maria can hear Pepper’s footsteps as she moves to Kay’s bedroom. 

“Kay?” Pepper’s voice sounds as she enters. Pepper brings the phone back up their ear. “How did you know?” 

“I know because I’m currently looking at her,” Maria sighs. 

It was quiet on the other end. 

“You’re saying Kay is with you?” Pepper demands. “Why on earth is she with you?” 

“How the hell should I know?” Maria spits. “She showed up on my doorstep!” 

“Is she okay?” Pepper demands and Maria rolls her eyes, looking at the teenager who had curled up on her couch. 

Her face softened at the fearful expression on Kay’s face. 

“She’s fine,” Maria sighs. 

“We can come and get her--” Pepper starts. 

“She said she was following a vision,” Maria interrupts. “She left without telling you for a reason. I’m only calling so I don’t get accused of abducting the Stark heir.” 

“Can you put her on the phone?” Pepper lets out a slow sigh. 

“Pepper wants to talk to you,” Maria holds out the phone but Kay doesn’t take it. “Kid?” 

Maria moves towards Kay and crouches in front of her. “Stark? Can you hear me?” 

Pepper’s voice is coming through the phone and Maria brings it back up. 

“If she’s not responding, she’s probably having a vision,” Pepper explained. “Can you see her eyes?” 

Maria reaches up to tug the baseball cap off of Kay’s head and then pulls her sunglasses off. 

“Yeah?” Maria frowns. 

“Are they glassy or flickering from side to side?” Pepper questioned. 

“Yes,” Maria confirms. 

“Kay obviously came to you for a reason,” Pepper sighed. “Can I trust you to keep her safe until she is ready to come back?” 

Maria was in no way, shape, or form ready to look after a teenager but she knows that there is no other choice. 

“Yes. What do I do about the vision?” Maria questioned. 

“Just talking to her helps. Physical contact grounds her. Can you do that?” Pepper explained. 

Maria was not a touchy-feely person. “I guess.” 

“Will you be okay if I hang up the phone?” Pepper questioned. 

Maria closes her eyes and takes a deep breath. “Alright. I will contact you when she’s ready to go.” 

Pepper hangs up and Maria feels very awkward. 

“Kid? Can you hear me?” Maria set her phone down and moves closer to Kay. “I’m going to place my hands on your knees.” 

Maria places a hand on each of Kay’s knees and squeezes slightly. 

Kay was mumbling something under her breath but Maria couldn’t make out what it was. 

“You’re doing just fine, kid,” Maria continues. “I have absolutely no clue how you managed to navigate the streets of New York in the wee hours of the morning while blind. Perhaps you have some skill sets we could improve upon.” 

Kay’s head then twitches and Kay takes a large breath. “Maria?” 

“You back with me?” Maria pulls her hands away. 

“Your future changed again,” Kay sighs. “Come.” 

Kay sits up and climbs off of the sofa and reaches to where her stuff was. “Help?” 

“What on earth are you doing?” Maria demands and Kay flinches under her commander voice. “You can’t just be cryptic and expect me to follow you when I still have no idea why you’re here.” 

“There’s a sniper outside your window,” Kay replies calmly and Maria’s eyes widen. “If we don’t leave, you’re going to get shot.” 

“Where are we going to go?” Maria questioned but she still pulls on her boots and a jacket, making sure she has her gun on her. 

“A diner,” Kay replies. 

“A diner?” Maria repeats as she passes Kay her things. 

Kay slides the sunglasses over her eyes. “Yes.” She pulls the hat over her hair and looks towards Maria. “I need you to guide me.” 

Kay reaches her hand out and Maria takes it, pulling Kay towards the door. 

“I need you to wrap an arm around me,” Kay tells her. “Keep me close.” 

Maria lets go of her hand and moves to wrap her arms around the teenager’s shoulders. 

“Please Lord, don’t let us get shot lest I have to face the rage of Pepper Potts,” Maria mumbles. 

Kay leads them down away from the apartment, her hand clutching a handful of Maria’s pajama shirt. 

“I’m sorry that I scared you,” Kay mumbles as they move. 

“You didn’t scare me,” Maria denies.

“I showed up and spouted off a lot of information about you. I got carried away trying to make you believe me and it frightened you. I’m sorry,” Kay explained. 

Maria sighs. “You’ve kept my ass alive so far so you can’t be too bad.” 

“Keep facing forward,” Kay mumbles. “Don’t look around.” 

Maria does as Kay says, feeling very overwhelmed at the thought of being out of control. 

“The man who wants to hurt you is a mole,” Kay whispers. “He’ll fail to kill you and be killed for his failure. You should be safe after tonight.” 

Kay stops in front of a small family diner, one of the only restaurants open in town. 

The best part about diners is that they don’t ask questions. 

When a teenager without shoes and an adult woman who looks nothing like said teenager is in her pajamas and they ask for a table, they’re given one. 

Kay leads them to a booth in the back that has an angled view of the window. 

Maria slides in but Kay slides in next to her instead of across from her. 

“I blocked you from view,” Kay mumbles. “Sorry about space.” 

Maria in her haste hadn’t grabbed her wallet but Kay shuffles until she can reach into her jeans, pulling out a black debit card with her name on it. A gift from Tony. 

“I’ve got it,” Kay mumbles. “Least I could do after scaring you.” 

Maria sighs but allows it and their orders are taken. 

Maria gets a coffee and some eggs and hashbrowns while Kay buys a hot chocolate and some waffles. 

“So,” Maria starts, deciding this was as good a time as any to get to know the teenager. “Tell me more about your father. Is the interview true?” 

“Tony’s not my real dad,” Kay replies. “But he had to keep me under wraps and hide the reason he took me in was for my visions.” 

“So he just adopted you willy nilly?” Maria questioned. 

“He tends to jump headfirst into things,” Kay nods. 

Maria snorts at how true that statement was. 

“Tell me more about yourself,” Maria coaxed. 

“My birth name is Kay Merricks. I’m sixteen years old,” Kay starts. “Uh, I was admitted to a psychiatric facility when I was twelve because they believed my visions were paranoid schizophrenia and disassociative identity disorder.” 

“So Stark did adopt you from the ward?” Maria questioned, pausing to accept the drinks the waitress brings them and guiding Kay’s hand until she finds the cup. 

“Yeah. It was nice. I didn’t know that they were doing awful things at the ward. I thought I was just naughty,” Kay mumbles, bringing the cup up to take a long sip. 

“What sort of things?” Maria curiously questioned, searching for signs that Kay was uncomfortable. She didn’t want to push the teenager that was saving her life to the point she felt uncomfortable. 

“Uh,” Kay hesitates. “They used to tie me to the beds when I slept so that I wouldn’t leave. They whipped my feet when I stumbled into things. They took my food away if I was bad.” 

Kay relays it calmly and Maria watches her talk, her posture just a little tense. 

“I wasn’t allowed to cry,” Kay continued. “And they injected me with needles if I had a vision and lashed out.” 

Maria lets her talk, wondering just how much Kay needed to get this off her chest. 

“The Matron, she was the one in charge,” Kay continues. “She was the one that let... Harry in.”

“Harry?” Maria repeats the word that Kay said with disgust. 

Kay nods. “I don’t know his name but I called him Harry. It was easier to say than bad man. Harry hurt us in ways that the others didn’t.” Her voice was quiet. 

Maria makes a hum of acknowledgment. 

“Harry…” Kay runs a finger around the ring of her cup. “Liked children.” 

Maria raises an eyebrow, straightening a little. “Liked how?” 

Kay frowns. “Too much.”

Maria was starting to put pieces together and was wondering if Kay had told anyone else about it. 

Guessing by the way Kay was blurting out everything on her chest, not likely. 

“I bit him,” Kay starts and Maria was pulled back to look at Kay. “He came into my room and he tried to hurt me and I bit his arm.” 

“Did you get punished?” Maria questioned. 

Kay nods. “He screamed and he hit me so hard that my ears rang. My head hurt and I couldn’t stop him.”

“How far did he go?” Maria’s voice was serious. 

“Just touched. He didn’t want to leave evidence,” Kay mumbled. 

“How many times did he do it?” Maria pushed. 

“Twice,” Kay shrugs. 

Maria isn’t sure how to reply to the teenager admitting to getting sexually assaulted but was saved by their food coming. 

Kay eats with her fingers, tearing off bits of plain waffles and sticking them in her mouth. 

“Does Tony know?” Maria questioned. 

“About Harry?” Kay questioned. “No.” 

“Do you plan on telling him?” Maria coaxed. 

“Do you?” Kay tilts her head to gaze up at Maria. 

Maria was conflicted but sighs. “No. You are saving my life. I can keep your secrets.” 

Kay nods and looks back down at her food, tearing another chunk off and eating it. 

They eat in peace and Maria finds herself relaxing and watching Kay move. Her fingers search the plate in search of more food and her hand glides around the table until she comes into contact with her cup. 

“You need to get an alternate identity,” Kay starts as she finishes her first waffle. 

Maria pauses, turning to look down at Kay. “Am I going to be compromised?” 

“I can’t tell you that. But it’s good to have a backup plan. And don’t let Shield know about it,” Kay continues before pulling off a piece of her second waffle. 

“You’re killing me, Stark,” Maria moans. 

Kay pauses, tilting her head up to look at Maria. “I’m sorry.” 

Maria is surprised by the remorse painted on the teenager’s face. 

“Don’t be,” Maria sighs. “You’re just delivering a message and keeping me safe.” 

Kay finishes her waffle and she tentatively leans to rest her head on Maria’s shoulder. 

Maria tenses up at the unexpected contact but slowly relaxes. She gets another refill on her coffee, careful not to jostle Kay. 

She was pretty sure the kid had fallen asleep but the sunglasses prevented her from seeing. 

Maria sits in the booth in the diner until her butt starts to go numb and she can’t drink any more coffee. 

“Stark,” Maria slowly nudges Kay. “Kid. Kay.” 

Kay perks up at her name and lets out a yawn. 

“Is it okay if we go?” Maria questioned. It was nearing four in the morning. 

Kay frowns before she nods. “Yes.” 

Kay pays for the meal and the waitress says nothing about the name on the debit card. 

Kay slides out of the booth first and stands, stretching before Maria follows. Kay moves towards Maria’s side and Maria wraps an arm around her to lead them out the door. 

The walk back to her apartment took a little longer since they didn’t have to rush with the prospective of a sniper over their heads. 

Maria was dead tired and had to get up for work in two hours. She leads Kay up into her apartment and back onto her couch. 

“Go to sleep, I’ll call your father,” Maria tells her. 

Maria calls Tony and informs him that Kay was okay to go home now. Tony promised to be there and hung up. 

Maria looks in on Kay who had taken her hat and sunglasses off and was curled up on the couch. 

Maria couldn’t fathom the pressure that Kay had on her shoulders and was grateful that the teenager wanted to save her from an untimely death. 

Maria’s cat jumps up and falls asleep at Kay’s feet and Maria sits in a chair nearby and waits. 

Tony arrives an hour after her call in a pajama shirt and sweatpants. He looked tired and he visibly relaxes when he sees Kay on the couch. 

“Thank you so much for looking after her,” Tony tells Maria. 

Maria is a little shocked at getting thanked by Tony. Everybody knew that Tony didn’t express gratitude very much and could be a very self-centered person. 

But she gets to witness a new side to Tony as he walks to Kay and crouches in front of her and gently shakes her shoulder. 

“Up and at ‘em, buttercup,” His voice is soft. “I buy you a bed and you just want to sleep on random people’s couches.” 

“Dadai?” Kay mumbles as her eyes open and her hands reach out to find his face. 

“Yup. Do you remember where you are?” Tony questioned. 

Kay frowns before she nods. “Maria’s.”

“It’s time to go home, buttercup,” Tony tells her. “Sit up and get ready.” 

Kay gets ready and Tony waits by the door. Maria takes that time to talk to Kay briefly. 

“Hey,” Maria pipes up so that she doesn’t scare Kay. Kay pauses in putting her sunglasses on. “I wanted to let you know that I owe you one. You saved me from my death. If you ever need anything, let me know and I’ll help.”

Kay finishes putting her sunglasses on and reaches towards Maria, walking forward until her hand finds Maria’s arm. Her fingers trail up until they reach Maria’s face. 

“It’s going to get rough,” Kay whispers. “But in the end, you’re really, really, happy.” 

“Thank you,” Maria whispers back and Kay lets her hands drop as Maria reaches out to ruffle Kay’s hair. 

Kay slips the hat on over her head and Maria guides her to Tony. 

“You want to walk? Car is parked down the street,” Tony comments. 

Kay takes a moment before she shakes her head. “Carry me?” 

“Of course,” Tony hoists the tiny teenager up onto his hip and Kay’s arms wrap around his neck as her head comes to rest on his shoulder. 

“Stay safe,” Kay mumbles as Tony departs and Maria is left wondering what on earth she is going to do. 

* * *

“So,” Tony starts, eyes flickering to look at the teenager in the passenger seat of the car. 

He didn’t have anything to base parenting off of. What does one say when their blind teenager sneaks out to go to a random woman’s house. “Why?”

Kay shrugs. 

“Kay,” Tony sighs. “You left in the middle of the night. I don’t know how you navigated the streets of New York when you can’t even dress yourself.” 

Kay flinches and Tony wants to hit himself because everything is going wrong. 

“Kay, buttercup,” Tony looks towards her. “I need you to come to one of us when you need this.” 

“I couldn’t,” Kay mumbles, fingers curling into fists. 

“Why not?” Tony questioned. 

He stops at a stoplight and looks at her and he frowns when he sees the tears rolling down from behind the sunglasses. 

“Kay?” Tony reaches out to touch her shoulder but she flinches away. 

“I’m sorry that I made you worry,” Kay sniffles. “But I had to do this on my own. The future… there are so many variables and this one was the easiest. Nobody got hurt in this choice so I left by myself.” 

“How about the next time you have to go off on an adventure chasing a vision,” Tony starts. “You tell Jarvis to let us know you’re safe. If you can, tell us your location. If you don’t want anyone to disrupt you, say so. You need to communicate what you need to me. I’m not a mind reader, Kay.” 

Kay wipes away the tears that fall from behind the frame of her glasses and rests her head on the window. 

“I forget.” Kay starts. “It scares me.”

“Forget what?” Tony frowns. 

“When they hurt me,” Kay reaches up to touch the shaved patches of hair hidden under her shaggy curls. “When I forgot my name. That wasn’t the only thing I forgot.” 

“What did you forget?” Tony was concerned. 

“I forget things sometimes. I can’t remember important things until later. I forget and draw blanks in my head and it scares me,” Kay confesses. 

Tony’s fingers curl and dig into the steering wheel. 

Kay was subjected to electroconvulsive therapy. Shocks of electricity were delivered to induce a small seizure and it was believed to change brain chemistry to cure mental illnesses. 

Because Kay wasn’t properly anesthetized---

Tony hadn’t thought about the side effects of shock therapy. He was stupid to think Kay’s mind wouldn’t have suffered from brutal torture. 

“I forget that you guys are there sometimes,” Kay admits. “I am used to you not being there so I forget that you are. When I wake up, I forget where I am and I have to touch your face. I forget that you care and need to know where I am. I forgot about you until Maria asked if you knew where I was.” 

“Okay,” Tony nods. “I’m not mad, Kay. I understand why you did what you did but I think that those memory issues are caused by damage to your brain. I need to take a look and see what’s going on inside that head of yours.” 

“Will it hurt?” Kay’s immediate question came. 

“No,” Tony vehemently denied. 

“Will you tie me down?” Kay’s next question came quieter. 

“We promised we weren’t going to tie you down,” Tony reminds her. 

“I trust you, Dadai,” Kay whispers. “If you think this will help then I will do it.” 

They arrive back at the tower and Tony finds that Kay had fallen asleep again. He scoops Kay into his arms again and enters the building. 

He knew that she left for a reason and she was probably going to get night terrors from whatever she saw. 

Tony takes Kay down to his lab and sets her down onto the sofa she took over when she came down. He pulls the blanket over her, takes a moment to collect himself and then sits at his stool. 

“Jarvis, pull up everything you can find on electroconvulsive therapy and the brain.”

  
  



	9. a hocht

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Kay has a meltdown in Tony's lab.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> milaya- sweet girl

Kat sits on the edge of a metal table in Tony’s workshop, two electrodes taped to either of her temples. 

She could do this. She wasn’t in any danger. Tony was different. He wouldn’t hurt her. 

Tony let Jarvis read out loud instead of listening to his loud rock music. Jarvis’s soothing voice helped Kay relax and not focus on the medical equipment Tony hooked her up too.

Steve loudly protested at first when he learned what Tony wanted to do. He thought Tony only wanted to know more about Kay’s visions. 

Tony pulled everyone into one room when Kay was asleep and explained that Kay was having lapses in her memory and he thought it was from the shock therapy and wanted to see if her brain functions were normal. 

Some were hesitant, but they let him do his thing. 

Tony witnessed one of her blanks when she pauses, frowns and then reaches up to the gel electrodes stuck to her head. She starts to tug at them a little panicked and Tony approaches. 

“Kay?” He questioned. 

Kay jumps before her hand falls and she relaxes. “Dadai?”

“Yeah,” Tony nods. “Are you okay?” 

“Are we in the lab?” Kay questioned. 

“Yes. We were monitoring your brain, remember?” Tony tells her. 

Kay nods. “Sorry.” 

“Don’t be sorry, buttercup,” Tony shakes his head, moving to look at the details on the screen. 

“Can we be done?” Kay questioned. 

Tony didn’t really want to stop the process but he also didn’t want to push Kay. 

“Alright,” Tony moves towards her and starts to peel the electrodes from her head, wiping away any residue that they leave behind. “There. You’re all good.” 

“Can I sleep on the couch?” Kay questioned in a tiny voice.

Tony frowns at her tone. “Sure. Are you feeling okay?” 

Kay jerks her head in a nod but Tony knew that she was hiding something. 

“Okay. Do you need me to guide you?” Tony questioned. 

“Help me down,” Kay requests and Tony helps Kay down from the table, leading her to the couch. Kay curls up on it and Tony can’t help the pang of worry that fills him.

“Tell Jarvis if you need anything and he can get me,” Tony promised, smoothing Kay’s hair back. 

Tony strokes her hair until Kay closes her eyes and falls asleep. 

Tony heads towards his screens and looks over the data results. 

It was peaceful for a while as Tony works. 

He pauses in his typing when he hears Kay’s breath hitch and she stirs. 

Kay’s breathing starts to pick up and Tony stands, making his way towards Kay. 

“Kay, buttercup, wake up,” Tony reaches out to touch her shoulder and Kay screams. 

Tony jerks back, startled, stumbling and falling back. He had never heard the pure fear in her voice before. 

Kay was sobbing, trying to get away from him and Tony had absolutely no idea what to do. 

“Jarvis, call for help,” Tony calls out. 

He can do nothing but watch as Kay tumbles off the sofa and scoots back until her back hits the wall and she curls up, bringing her arms around her head. 

“Tony? What’s wrong?” Pepper enters the room with the others hot on her heels. 

Tony looks towards Pepper helplessly. “I don’t know what happened?” 

“Did you make her panic?” Steve questioned. 

“She was sleeping,” Tony defends. 

Clint moves towards her slowly but Kay curls tighter and starts to mumble. 

“Please. No. I’ll be good. I’m sorry. Please. I’m sorry. I’ll be good. No.” It was a repeat of those four phrases as Kay rocks back and forth in a self-soothe. 

“There are too many people in here,” Pepper tells them. “Go.” 

Tony leaves the room because he didn’t want to make it worse. Steve followed because he didn’t know what to do. Clint hesitates, lingering in the doorway. 

“Kay, my sweet girl,” Pepper talks loudly but softly so that Kay can hear her. “It’s mum. You’re in Tony’s lab. You’re safe.” 

“He’s going to come!” Kay sobs. 

“You’re safe,” Pepper repeats. “You need to breathe, Kay.” 

“He’s in the doorway!” Kay cries and Pepper turns to look at Clint. He understands and leaves. Natasha was left with Pepper. 

“He’s gone,” Pepper soothes. “Your Aunt Natasha is here, she won’t let anybody hurt you.” 

“I don’t like him,” Kay whimpers. “It doesn’t feel good. I don’t like it. I don’t like him.”

“He’s not here, Kay,” Pepper tells her. “Can I come closer?” 

Kay was gasping for air but shakes her head violently, her curly hair whipping at the force. “No! Don’t touch me!” 

“Okay. It’s alright,” Pepper soothes and looks towards Natasha, a nonverbal sign for her turn. 

Natasha fumbles for something until she remembers what Kay did for her the other night. 

“Do you remember the song you sang to me?” Natasha questioned. “Sing it with me. Okay?” 

Kay’s breath hitched but she was listening. 

“Let’s go in the garden,” Natasha wasn’t a singer but she could carry a tune. “You’ll find something waiting. Right there where you left it, lying upside down.” 

Kay was humming short bits between frantic gasps for air. 

“When you finally find it, you’ll see how it’s faded, the underside is lighter when you turn it around,” Natasha continued. 

“E-everyt-thing st-stays,” Kay stutters out. “R-right wh-where you l-left it.” 

Natasha coaxed Kay through the song until her breathing gradually got slower and her arms slowly lower from their position protecting her head. 

Natasha hums and moves closer and Kay tenses up but doesn’t stop her. 

Natasha slowly moves until she’s within arms reach of Kay. 

“Can I touch you?” Natasha questioned. 

Kay lunges forward, wrapping her arms around Natasha’s waist and gripping her with everything she had. 

One of Natasha’s hand finds its way to rub Kay’s back, the other cradles her head closer to her. 

“It’s alright. I’ve got you,” Natasha soothed. 

“I thought I was back there,” Kay hiccups into Natasha’s shirt. “And he was coming.”

“Who?” Natasha treads carefully. 

“Harry,” Kay replies. The word was forced from her mouth. 

“What does Harry do?” Natasha softly rocks Kay side to side. 

“He hurts little girls,” Kay chokes. 

Natasha remembers the purple fingerprint bruising on Kay’s thighs and around her bra. 

“It’s alright,  _ milaya _ ,” Natasha croons, holding her close. “He’s not here.”

“I forgot!” Kay weeps. 

“It’s alright,” Natasha repeats. “You’re safe. Do you think I would let anything happen to you?” 

Kay shakes her head, burying her face into Natasha’s shirt. 

“Kay?” Pepper speaks up. 

Kay flinches into Natasha. 

“Can I come closer, sweet girl?” Pepper questioned. 

“Mathair,” Kay whispers. She nods and Pepper moves slowly, crouching on her knees next to Natasha and reaching out. 

Kay’s back goes tense when Pepper’s hand connects with it but she quickly relaxes. 

“I’m sorry,” Kay mumbles. “I’m sorry.” 

“It’s alright,” Pepper promised, moving her hand up and down Kay’s back. 

Pepper scoots closer to Kay and they were soon a huddle of red hair, the teenager sandwiched between the two women. 

Kay’s breathing eventually evens out and her body relaxes, melting into the two women, tired. 

“I’m scared,” Kay whispered. 

“Of what?” Pepper gently coaxed. 

“The future,” Kay mumbles, shaking her head as tears drip onto Natasha’s shirt. “I’m trying so hard to change it.” 

“You can’t change everything, sweet girl,” Pepper soothed. 

“But I don’t want anyone to die,” Kay murmurs. 

“You can’t save everybody,” Natasha pipes up. 

“But…” Kay shifts her head to stare at her lap. “If I don’t then you lose.” 

“Who does?” Natasha questioned. 

“The world,” Kay shakes her head before correcting herself. “The universe.”

That statement was extremely concerning. 

“I know that you are trying your absolute hardest,” Pepper takes one of Kay’s hands. “It’s okay to ask for help. You don’t have to do this alone.”

Kay reaches up to touch Pepper’s face, tears silently dripping off her cheeks. “I don’t know what you look like. Every vision I have had of you has been violent. I don’t know what you look like without blood on you.”

“You don’t need to see,” Pepper shakes her head. “You know my hair is red like yours. I have pale skin like you. My eyes are a little darker blue than yours.” 

Kay reaches up a trembling hand to touch Pepper’s hair. “Red. This color is red.”

Pepper hadn’t realized that Kay had never heard of such colors associated with the correct terms. 

“Your hair is that color too,” Pepper smiles softly at the tiny grin Kay gets when she reaches up to touch her own hair. 

“Red.” She mumbles. She turns towards Natasha, reaching out towards her. “Your hair is… red?” 

“Yeah,” The corner of Natasha’s mouth quirks up in a small smirk. “My hair is red.”

Kay lets out a small laugh of shocked joy. “Red.” She repeats. “We have red hair.”

“Your eyes are blue?” Kay turns towards Pepper again. “Blue?”

“Yes,” Pepper nods. “Your eyes are a different shade of blue.” 

Kay reaches up to trace just under her eyes with her fingers. “Blue. I have blue eyes.” 

Kay turns towards Natasha. “Your eyes are not blue.” 

“No. They’re green,” Natasha corrects. 

“Green,” Kay repeats. “Red. Blue. Green.”

“Tony’s hair is brown,” Pepper continues. “Same color as his eyes.” 

“Brown,” Kay whispered to herself. 

“Clint has blonde hair. That’s a shade of yellow,” Natasha tacks on. 

“And his eyes are... blue?” Kay questioned. 

“Yes,” Pepper confirms. 

“And on his uniform, right here,” Natasha slowly places a hand onto Kay’s stomach. “That’s purple.”

“Purple,” Kay repeats. “And the rest?” 

“Black,” Natasha replies. 

“Black and purple,” Kay whispered. “And Dadai’s uniform? That’s red?”

“Red and gold,” Pepper nods. 

Kay looked overwhelmed with child-like wonder as she quietly repeats all the colors to herself. 

“Red. Blue. Green. Brown. Yellow. Purple. Black. Gold.” She chants under her breath, a grin on her face as she plays with the hem of her shirt. 

Pepper’s eyes meet Natasha’s just over Kay’s head and they smile at each other as the teenager in their arms snuggles closer to them. 

The terrifying crushing feeling of fear had left and was replaced with a safety that Kay hadn’t felt before. 

She knew that Pepper and Natasha would protect her so she would try harder to let them in in the future. 


	10. a naoi

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Kay is collecting favors in exchange for information because she knows that she'll need each and every favor in seven years.

Kay shoots upright in her bed, gasping for air. 

“Is everything alright, Kay?” Jarvis questioned. “Would you like me to call for assistance?” 

Kay shakes her head. “No,” She rasps. She can hear whispers in the back of her head. 

‘Steve’ they call. ‘Steve’. 

Kay shoves her blankets back and scoots to the edge of the bed, her bare feet finding the cold hardwood floor. 

She makes her way to the elevator, rubbing the sleep from her eyes. “Take me to the gym, please.” 

Jarvis takes the elevator down and then opens the doors at the gym. “Arrived.” 

Kay exits and pulls the bracelet up to her ear. “Guide me, Jarvis.”

Kay can hear the sound of flesh hitting polyester as Steve hits a punching bag. 

“Steve?” Kay calls out and the hitting stops. 

“Kay? What’s wrong?” Steve questioned as he approached her. 

“You had a bad dream,” Kay starts. “If you keep going like this you’re going to hurt yourself.” 

“I heal quickly,” Steve promised her. 

“I can see when you get hurt, Steve,” Kay sighs. “Please don’t make me watch that again.” 

It was manipulative but Kay didn’t want him hurt. 

“I’m sorry, Kay,” Steve sighed. 

“Do you want to talk about him?” Kay questioned, finding the bench against the wall and sitting on it. She could hear Steve sit next to her, cracking his water bottle open. 

“He was my best friend,” Steve starts. “His name was James but I called him Bucky.” 

Kay listens as Steve tells stories about Bucky and their days in the Howling Commandos. 

“You should buy a heating blanket,” Kay tells him in between one of his stories. 

“A heating blanket?” Steve repeats. “What is that? Why would I need it?” 

“It’s a blanket that has wires running through it that heat up when plugged in. It’s so you don’t have to feel cold after your nightmares,” Kay explained. 

“You know that I feel cold?” Steve questioned in a small voice. 

“I see a lot of things, Uncail Steve,” Kay replies. “Do not fear the cold.”

Steve reaches out and places a comforting hand onto Kay’s bedhead. “Thanks Kay.”

* * *

Because of how often Kay woke up to help the others, she had a scheduled nap during the day. 

She often curled up on the couch in Tony’s lab, insistent on sleeping there. It wasn’t hurting anything so Tony let her. 

Kay was going through notebooks like nothing else, pencils and charcoal being used at alarming paces. 

Those notebooks were Kay’s. She wouldn’t let anyone see what was inside unless she wanted them to know. 

Kay settled in nicely. She came out of her shell around the Avengers but if she left the tower then she went non-verbal or mono-syllabic answers. 

Tony tried inventing all sorts of things to protect Kay’s feet and make them as comfortable as possible but Kay refused to cover her feet. It was a struggle to even get her to wear socks. As it approaches winter, it gets colder and Kay refuses to cover anything below her ankles. She spent a lot of time cuddling with Steve and could only be bribed to wear socks with the promise of new books for Jarvis to read to her. But still she would only wear thin socks where the cold could still be felt through but it was better than nothing. 

She hadn’t wandered much after her surprise visit to Maria and tried to be as clear as she could when warning others. They took her warnings to heart and it had saved their lives many times. 

Two months after Kay wandered in the middle of the night, she gets another vision in the middle of the night, accompanied by screaming whispers. 

Kay lets out a sigh as she shuffles out of bed. “Jarvis, please wake up…” Kay pauses as she sorts through trying to figure out who to wake. “Mathair.” 

Kay sits on the edge of her bed and cradles her head in her hands at the emotions that would surely be shown later on. 

“Kay?” Pepper’s voice sounds at her door as it opens. “Sweet girl, what’s wrong?” 

“I need to go somewhere,” Kay mumbles. “Now.” 

“Now?” Pepper repeats. 

Kay nods. “You told me to tell you when I need to leave to follow a vision. I need to leave.”

Pepper lets out a small sigh. “Can I come with you?” She sits on the edge of the bed next to Kay. 

“You can walk with me,” Kay starts. “But you can’t come inside.” 

“Why did you wake me?” Pepper questioned. “The others are trained and could protect you better.” 

“Because if they come with me they will cry,” Kay explained. “And get angry and escalate the situation.” 

“Okay,” Pepper lets out a sigh. “Let me go get dressed. I’ll be back in a moment.” Pepper pressed a kiss to Kay’s head and leaves to go and get dressed for the chilly weather outside. 

Pepper returns and heads to Kay’s closet to pick out something for her to dress in. 

“Are you sure that you can’t wear shoes?” Pepper questioned. “It rained last night.” 

Kay huffs as she dressed. “I don’t want to.” 

“Please, I don’t want your feet to get frostbite,” Pepper pleads. 

“I will wear the flipflops Tony made,” Kay bargains. 

“Deal,” Pepper fetches the shoes and helps Kay put them on before picking a coat for Kay and helping her into it. 

Kay slips her sunglasses on and pulls a beanie on to cover her hair. “Can we go now?” 

“Yeah,” Pepper wraps an arm around Kay and leads her to the elevator. 

“We have to walk,” Kay explained as they exit the elevator. 

“Let them know where we are if they question it,” Pepper tells Jarvis. 

They head out into the cold wet streets of New York and Kay takes Pepper through the path she memorized. 

Pepper helped Kay cross the street better than Jarvis could and they soon find themselves by a diner. 

“You wait here,” Kay tells Pepper. “I am going down the street. I’ll be back.” 

“Okay,” Pepper breathes out, pulling Kay closer and pressing a kiss to Kay’s forehead. “Stay safe.” 

“I will,” Kay nods before heading off back into the streets and down to a familiar apartment complex. She enters the eight-digit code and heads up to the second floor and counts the door until she arrives. 

She knocks three times and waits, rocking on her feet. 

The door opens and Kay tilts her head up to face the person in the door. 

“Did you know that I had a vision of a supposedly dead man dying?” Kay responds instead of greeting her. “Don’t shoot me.”

“Stark?” Maria sleepily questioned. “What are you doing here?” 

“I couldn’t very well show up to your work to warn you,” Kay frowns. 

“Does anyone know you’re here this time?” Maria questioned. 

“Pepper does. If I took anyone else then this night would end with you having a black eye,” Kay replies. 

Maria’s eyes widen and she sighs, reaching out to grab Kay’s shoulder and pulls her in. 

“Why are you here?” Maria questioned. 

“I told you,” Kay sighed. “You’re lying.” 

“About what?” Maria questioned. 

“Project Tahiti,” Kay replies. 

The hand on Kay’s shoulder tightens and fingers dig into her shoulders. 

“What do you know?” Maria’s voice was serious and deep. 

“Don’t interrogate me,” Kay bats Maria’s hand off. “I came here to warn you.” 

“About what?” Maria repeats. 

“Phil Coulson,” Kay sighed, exasperated. “A man who supposedly is dead. Clint told me about him. I just had a vision of him dying again. So either I’m seeing shit or he’s still alive.” 

“Watch your language,” Maria chides. 

“No!” Kay barks. “His death destroyed Natasha and Clint!” 

“Do they know he’s alive?” Maria questioned. 

“No!” Kay was getting frustrated. “I didn’t tell them!” 

“So Phil is going to die?” Maria questioned. 

“Not if you don’t change it!” Kay folds her arms in frustration. 

“How does he die?” Maria questioned. 

“His throat is slit by a garrote,” Kay replies. “He sprays blood all over baby agents.” 

“Okay,” Maria sounds weary. “Alright.” 

“I need a way to contact you and you are guaranteed to answer,” Kay tells her. “I don’t want to have to keep coming here in the middle of the night.” 

“I have a burner phone here,” Maria moves to go and collect it. 

“I don’t approve of you lying,” Kay replies. 

“Are you going to tell them?” Maria questioned as she returns. 

“It’s not my secret to tell,” Kay huffs. “I know lots of secrets that should be known but I won’t tell because it would alter the future.” 

“Thank you,” Maria’s voice was quiet. “Here. Hold out your hand.” 

Kay reaches out and a small flip phone was placed into her hands. 

“This will reach me. I’ve programmed my number into it already,” Maria explained. 

“We should have a code phrase so we know who to trust. You can pass this number onto Phil for emergencies. He can call me and ask me for help and I’ll look and help in exchange for a boon. Is that fair?” Kay questioned. 

“That’s fair,” Maria nods. “What do you want the phrase to be?” 

“How about whoever calls will tell me ‘The Wanderer Comes At Night’,” Kay suggests. And I’ll reply with ‘For They Prefer the Shadows.’ Does that work?” 

“You’re The Wanderer?” Maria replies with a big of amusement tinged in her tone. 

“I don’t want them to know I’m a Stark,” Kay replies. 

“That’s fair enough. Your new codename is The Wanderer,” Maria nods. 

Kay relaxes and looks up at Maria. “I’m sorry I yelled.” 

“You’ve got a great deal of stress on your shoulders, kiddo,” Maria sighed. “I don’t blame you. Sometimes shouting is the only way to get my attention.” 

“Keep Phil safe,” Kay tells her. “Because if Natasha and Clint find out and then he dies again they will kill you.” 

“Is that a vision?” Maria inquired. 

“It’s common sense,” Kay correct, shifting to put the phone in her pocket. “Do you remember what I told you last time?” 

“I’ve done everything you asked and it’s been two months,” Maria confirms. “What do you expect to happen?” 

“It’s building up,” Kay explained. “The fallout is going to be major and I’m trying to prevent as many deaths as possible.” 

“If you ever decide to reveal yourself to Shield, we’d love to have you,” Maria tells Kay. 

“That’s against child labor laws,” Kay cocks her head as she rocks on her feet, the material of the flipflops rubbing uncomfortably between her toes. “I wouldn’t worry about me needing a job. I’m a Stark. And you have my number if you want information in exchange for a boon. Pass it onto those you trust but don't give my name.” 

“Right,” Maria sighs and leans against the wall as she looks over the teenager standing in her living room. 

“Speaking of boons, you know the favor you owe me,” Kay starts, her voice quiet and unsure as though Maria would turn her down. 

“What about it?” Maria questioned, standing a little straighter. 

“Trinity Heights Sanatorium,” Kay starts, the words barely a whisper. “I need you to get that place shut down.” 

“Sanatorium?” Maria repeats. “Is that the place you were held?” 

Kay lets out a slow nod. “Pepper is trying to do it but runs into walls. I need someone from the outside. Even if you can’t do it, can you try?” Kay’s face is hopeful and Maria is reminded of her young age. 

“Sure,” Maria agrees because what choice does she have? She owes it to Kay and the kid wasn’t asking for much. 

“Fred passed on my files to Pepper. I can get them for you if you need them,” Kay continues, fingers fiddling with the zipper on her jacket. 

“I’ll let you know,” Maria tells her. “That phone is a two way. I have that number. If I find out anything, I’ll call you.” 

The tension flows out of Kay and the teenager smiles up at her. 

“You don’t know how much you’re doing for me. Thank you so much,” Kay replies. 

“You scratch my back, I’ll scratch yours. You keep coming to me with those visions and I’ll work to do whatever you need me to do,” Maria shrugs. “C’mon. You’ve been here for more than a half-hour.” 

Kay nods, turning towards the doors. 

“Any parting wisdom from the future?” Maria sarcastically questioned as she unlocks the door. 

Kay’s hand reaches out and Maria freezes when her hand touches the left side of her abdomen. She pushes slightly, fingers tracing a patch of skin.

“Don’t call his bluff. He really will shoot,” Kay replies before turning towards the door. “Goodbye, Maria.”

Kay heads back down the street towards the diner, entering and pausing at the doorway. 

“Kay!” Pepper’s arms wrap around her in a desperate hug to check her over for injuries. “Are you okay?” 

“She didn’t shoot me,” Kay comments. 

Pepper reels back. “Did you expect her to shoot you!?” 

“It’s always a possibility with her,” Kay shrugs. “Just a very small percent.” 

“What am I going to do with you, sweet girl?” Pepper sighed, pulling Kay close and pressing a kiss to her head. “Are you ready to go back?” 

“Yes,” Kay nods, reaching up to grab some of Pepper’s coat in her hand and following her out of the diner and back into the chilly streets. 

The flip flops got so annoying that Kay stopped to take them off and Pepper didn’t discipline her for it. She likely knew it was lucky that Kay wore anything on her feet at all. 

Kay knew that she would expect Phil or one of his agents to contact her in the future. She knew that in seven years she would need all of the boons she collected. If she gave information in exchange for boons then she could count on their help in the future. 

They would need all the help they could get. 

Kay feels Pepper next to her, blissfully unaware of what the future holds. 

Kay’s grip on Pepper’s coat tightens just a little. 


	11. a deich

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Kay is spreading word to people who she will find useful in the future.

The first time the phone rang, it was in the middle of the night. Kay had almost forgotten about the phone. 

She flips it open and answers it. 

“Are you there? Okay. Phil gave me a code… uh. Shit. What was it?” The male on the other end babbles. “The Wanderer Comes at Night. Is that right? We need help.” 

“For They Prefer the Shadows,” Kay replies. “What is your name?” 

“... you’re a child,” The voice breathes out. 

“You said you need help. Either you tell me what you need or I will hang up,” Kay replies. 

“Wait!” He pleads. “Leo Fitz. My name is Leo Fitz.” 

“Okay. What is your call regarding?” Kay inquired, shifting to pull the blankets up to cover her cold legs. 

“I need to know how to save Jemma Simmons,” Fitz replies. “Phil said you could help. I don’t know how.” 

“Don’t doubt his word,” Kay replies. “You want information on Jemma Simmons. Give me a moment to see what I can do.” 

Kay leans back onto her pillow and relaxes and like they taught her, searches for a person in the future. She finds a Jemma Simmons easily enough. Kay sits back up and wipes away the blood falling onto her upper lip. 

“Are you still there?” Kay questioned the man. 

“I’m here,” He confirms. 

“I am going to state some information. You tell me if I have it correct,” Kay tells him. The information could have easily changed if she chose the wrong outcome to focus on. “Jemma Simmons was caught in an explosion resulting from Hydra in their effort to get information. Despite not having severe physical wounds, her condition is deteriorating. She won’t wake up. Am I correct?” 

It was silent for a moment. “... yes… how did you know all that?” Fitz sounded awed. 

“There is a wound on her chest that required stitches, correct?” Kay continues, flicking through various future scenarios and pushing herself. 

“Yes. Why?” Fitz inquired. 

“Peel the bandage back and place your fingertips over the stitches,” Kay instructs. 

“What? I don’t want to--” Fitz starts, embarrassed. 

“Listen to me, Agent,” Kay makes her voice just a touch louder. “Do you want her to live? Put your goddamn fingers on her stitches and worry about touching her chest later!” 

“Yes… ma’am?” It seemed that he knew it was a command but didn’t feel right addressing a child as ‘ma’am’. “Okay. I’m touching the stitches-- hold on, I’m getting help--” Fitze briefly talks to someone else. 

“Okay. Move your fingertips to the right, just over her breast,” Kay keeps going. It was weird directing someone through medical attention when she couldn’t even see. 

“Okay…” His voice was a little flustered. 

“Push down but not too hard. Do you feel that?” Kay questioned. 

“What the fuck?” His voice was astonished. “What is that?” 

“That is a piece of debris that was lodged in her chest that they failed to remove when closing her up. Put your thumb and your pointer finger around it to keep it from moving and get help so it doesn’t travel further into her body.” 

“Okay…” Fitz breathed out. “Okay. Thank you. Thank you. Phil was right. Thank you.” 

“You owe me a boon. I will collect it when I need it Leo Fitz,” Kay informs him. 

“Okay. Thank you,” He repeats once more before he hangs up and Kay closes the phone. 

She knew that she had bled on her shirt again from forcing multiple visions of someone she didn’t know. But she had another boon from Fitz and if she was correct then Simmons would feel like she owed her too. 

Kay slides out of bed, pinching her nose to keep the blood from dripping as she heads towards the elevator. 

“Natasha,” Kay tells Jarvis and the elevator descends. 

Kay moves out into Natasha’s floor, a little more familiar with it since she had been there before. 

She knocks on Natasha’s door because the whispers were warning her not to go in. She couldn’t dodge a weapon while holding her bleeding nose. 

The door is whipped open and Kay backs up when the voices scream of danger. 

“Don’t shoot me!” Kay blurts but through her pinched nose it sounded more like ‘don’t thoot me’.

“Kay?” Natasha questioned. “What happened? Why are you covered in blood?” 

“Vision,” Kay replies. “I need help cleaning up.” 

Natasha puts her gun away and reaches out to place a hand onto Kay’s shirt and guide her into her bedroom and into her bathroom. 

“Same thing as before,” Natasha tells her before hosting her up onto the bathroom counter. Kay peels her bloody top off and it is replaced with a towel to cover her up. 

It was quiet as Natasha wets down a washcloth and starts to wipe the blood off of Kay’s face. 

“What made you bleed so much?” Natasha questioned, her touch was firm enough to clean but soft enough to not hurt. 

“A vision. I had to find someone,” Kay replies. 

“You can choose who you see?” Natasha questioned. “I didn’t think you could pick.” 

“The men that took me at the ward. They had me search for Dadai. They had me search for people and I had to learn how to do it,” Kay replies, frowning as she remembers them. “It takes a lot out of me and makes me tired. I don’t do it unless I absolutely have to.” 

“Why did you have to search for someone tonight?” Natasha re-wets the towel. 

“I can’t tell you,” Kay mumbles. “I know you’re not fond of secrets and I’m sorry.” 

“As long as you’re not putting yourself into danger and keep coming when you need help then you keep doing it,” Natasha doesn’t like not knowing everything and likes being in control but she had to trust Kay on this. The teenager had saved her life many times. She was ‘Aintin Nat’ and Kay expressed her love for her. It was genuine. So Natasha trusts that the teenager will understand how dangerous situations can get and know when to bail. 

Natasha finishes up and fetches one of her nightshirts, helping Kay slide it on. Kay looked more tired than ever. Her skin was pale from the blood loss and bags like bruises were forming under her eyes from lack of sleep she got at night. 

“Can I sleep with you tonight?” Kay’s voice was quiet. “Please?” 

“Alright,” Natasha helps Kay down and settles her into her bed before cleaning up the bathroom and throwing her dirty laundry into the hamper. 

When Natasha returned, Kay was already asleep, curled up into a ball with her hands tucked under her cheek. 

Natasha climbs back into bed, not intending on getting anymore sleep and watching over Kay as she slept. 

* * *

Kay’s bare feet patter on the cold sidewalk of New York as she walks next to Steve. 

Here she was chasing another vision and let Steve come with her because he ran this route every morning. 

They had to walk quite a bit but Kay didn’t want to ride in the car. She hated cars. They made her feel dizzy and she didn’t know where she was going much the same reason why she didn’t like to be carried unless by those she explicitly trusted. 

Steve didn’t really understand her visions. He didn’t like her going out there by herself without any protection so Kay told him to come along. 

She had Steve wait at a cafe just down the street from the building before moving on herself. 

She heads up to the second floor and knocks on the door three times, just like she did with Maria. 

The door is opened. “Hello.” 

“Is this Nelson and Murdock?” Kay questioned. 

“Yeah,” The man replied. “Are you looking for lawyers? You can’t be older than fourteen. Wait… you’re the kid Stark!” 

“Can I come in?” Kay replies. 

“Yeah. Sure. Come in,” She assumes he moves aside but she frowns. 

“I’m blind,” Kay replies. “Would you please guide me inside.” 

“Oh. Right. Sorry. I just assumed since you made it here yourself--” He cuts himself off before he gets ahead of himself. “My name is Franklin Nelson but you can call me Foggy.” 

He reaches out and places a hand onto her shoulder to guide her inside. 

“Can I ask what you’re here for?” He questioned. 

“I’m looking for Mr. Murdock,” Kay knew that she needed him on her side. “Is he here?” 

“Yeah. I’ll go get him for you,” Foggy nods. “Karen, this is--” 

Kay steps forward. “My name is Kay Stark. Pleased to meet you Ms. Page.” 

“Stark?” Karen repeats. 

Kay nods.

“Right. If you could show Miss Stark to a seat while I fetch Matt it would be appreciated,” Foggy’s footsteps were already signalling he was walking away. 

“Right. Well. Is it alright if I touch your shoulder?” Karen questioned. 

Kay nods and Karen’s hand falls onto her shoulder to lead her into a room. Kay sits at the desk and waits. 

The door opens and she can hear Foggy enter with someone else. 

“Matt, this is Kay Stark,” Foggy introduced. “Miss Stark, this is Matt Murdock.” 

“What brings you by today, Miss Stark?” Matt questioned. “Surely Tony Stark can afford his own lawyers.” 

“Actually, if it’s okay with you. I’d like to speak with Mr. Murdock alone,” Kay replies before her lip quirks up in a half smile. “Blind person to blind person.” 

“But--” Foggy starts. 

“Very well,” Matt agrees. 

“Alright,” Foggy reluctantly accepts and he turns to leave with Karen. As soon as the door closes, Matt starts talking. 

“What can I do for you today, Miss Stark?” He questioned. 

“You can tell when someone is lying, can’t you?” Kay questioned but continued before he could answer. “Everything I’m about to tell you, no matter how insane it may seem, is the absolute truth.” 

“Very well. Go ahead,” Matt’s voice was interested. 

“I don’t know if you watch the news much or know anything about me,” Kay starts. “What do you know?”

Matt talks about the generic story concocted for television and goes over her medical history briefly. 

“Right. All of that was a lie,” Kay nods and she can feel him perk up in interest. “What I’m about to tell you cannot leave this room. You cannot tell your friend Foggy or Karen. Can you agree to that?” 

“I suppose,” Matt reluctantly agrees. 

“I see the future,” Kay starts. “I have visions of the future and visions of the Avengers. Sometimes I get random ‘callings’. Random visions that have nothing to do with the Avengers but intertwine. I have seen the next seven years of the future and I came here because you’re in it.” 

“I’m in your vision of the future?” Matt repeats. 

“Well, not you. Daredevil,” Kay clarifies. 

“What do you know?” Matt’s voice was a little more serious. 

“I followed a vision here because I need your help. I am willing to give you information of the future depending on the situation if you teach me to fight,” Kay bargains. 

“Fight?” Matt repeats. “Why on earth would you like me to teach you?” 

“Because you’re blind like I am,” Kay tells him, reaching up to pull off her sunglasses despite the face he couldn’t see her eyes. “Things are going to get dangerous soon and I need to know how to protect the ones I love.” 

“Have you seen a future where I teach you?” Matt questioned. 

“I can’t always answer questions about the future because it influences them easily. I will give you whatever information you would like if I can give it in exchange for lessons on defending myself. I don’t want to know how to incapacitate or kill, I just want to know how to defend myself from getting kidnapped or something else. I’m a Stark, someone is bound to soon enough,” Kay replies. Even though she hadn’t seen herself getting nabbed, it was inevitable. 

It was quiet as Matt soaks up the information given. 

“You’re not lying,” He finally decides on saying. “Either you truly do see the future or you really believe that you do.” 

“How else would I know about your late night activities?” Kay questioned. “I need this. Please.” 

“What would your… family have to say about this?” Matt questioned. 

“They understand that I have to chase my visions sometimes. They won’t ask too many questions if I keep coming here,” Kay shrugs, fiddling with the sleeves of her shirt. “I swear. Any information you need I will give you.” 

It was quiet for a long time and Kay lets him think. 

“Alright,” Matt finally replies and Kay grins. “But just as a trial run. I reserve the right to stop lessons whenever I feel the need too and you have to give me the information that I need.” 

“I swear,” Kay replies. “I need a way to contact you.” 

Matt gives her his phone number and in exchange, she gives him the number to the burner phone that Maria gave her and phrases to use when answering. 

“I can also give you money if you’re worried about someone noticing,” Kay starts. 

“I don’t want your money, kid,” Matt replies. 

“Okay,” Kay sighs. “Thank you for letting me talk to you. You can pass my number onto those you deem trustworthy of it but don’t give my name. I go by The Wanderer.” 

“There are three people I may pass your number too,” Matt tells her. “Will you offer them information too?” 

“I will give information in exchange for a boon that I can use at any time that I want with no expiration date. I need to trust that these people will live up to and fulfill their boon after I have given information,” Kay was serious. She didn’t want to push herself and give out information to people who couldn’t help her in the future. 

“They will,” Matt assures her. 

“Then I believe my business here is done,” Kay stands. “Call me when you can set up lessons.” 

Kay doesn’t shake hands with Matt, mainly because neither can see where the hand is. She makes her way to the door and pulls it open. 

“You’re finished?” Foggy questioned. 

“Yes,” Kay nods, shuffling forward. “Thank you for your time. If you would please show me to the door?” 

“Are you okay to be going by yourself?” Karen questioned. “I mean…” She trails off. 

“The fact that I’m a child? A Stark? Blind? Mentall ill?” Kay lists off all the different reasons. 

“I didn’t mean to offend you, I’m sorry!” Karen sounds genuinely apologetic. 

“I can take care of myself,” Kay replies, reaching forward. “Please show me out.” 

Foggy’s hand falls onto her shoulder and he guides her back to the door. “Thanks for coming by.” 

“If anyone asks, I was never here,” Kay replies as she heads out. 

“We don’t divulge details of our clients with anybody else,” Foggy assured her. 

“I will see you later, Foggy Nelson,” Kay grins and turns to walk out, leaving Foggy in the doorway. 

“...later?” Foggy repeats. 


	12. a haon déag

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Sometimes, Kay hates the whispers.

Kay kept a tally of people in her notebooks. 

The Avengers didn’t go into her notebooks and Kay needed to be able to remember who owed what. 

Maria Hill owed her one boon. Leo Fitz owed her one. Jemma Simmons doesn’t owe a boon but will help. Matt Murdock owes no boons. 

The next time her phone rang, she was listening to a movie with the Avengers. They knew about the phone despite the fact that Kay offered no explanation. 

Kay kept the phone on her at all times so she shuffles out from where she was sandwiched between Tony and Pepper and heads towards her bedroom for privacy. 

“Don’t let anyone watch, Jarvis,” Kay tells Jarvis. 

“Very well, Kay,” Jarvis confirms. 

Kay answers the phone, pausing for three seconds. 

“The Wanderer?,” A voice breathes out. “The Wanderer Comes at Night.” 

“For They Prefer the Shadows,” Kay replies. “What is your name?” 

“It’s Matt,” The voice answers. 

Kay then realized it’s Matt Murdock. 

“What can I do for you?” Kay questioned, laying on her bed in preparation to search for information. 

“I need information on Wilson Fisk,” Matt answers, his voice frustrated. 

“Give me a moment to look,” Kay replies before setting the phone down, the call still running as she searches for a Wilson Fisk. 

It was easy to find him because his fate was intertwined with Matt’s. 

“Are you still there, Mr. Murdock?” Kay pulls the phone back up. 

“Yes, what did you find?” Matt inquired. 

“I can’t give you much but I can give you a name,” Kay was a little apologetic. “Vanessa Marianna. She owns the Scene Contempo art gallery in Manhattan.” 

“This woman will lead me to Fisk?” Matt questioned. 

“Yes,” Kay replies. “Your fate and Wilson Fisk’s fate are intertwined in the future. Stay safe.” 

“Very well. Thank you Wanderer,” Matt acknowledges. “Your first lesson is on Friday. Meet me at the boxing ring. Do you know the address?” 

“Yes,” Kay replies. “I will see you Friday.” 

Matt hangs up and Kay sits up, thankful that she didn’t bleed. 

Kay wanders back down to the living room. 

“Hey buttercup. Figure everything out?” Tony questioned. 

Kay nods, crawling back into her spot between Tony and Pepper, a little tired from searching for Fisk. 

Tony wraps an arm around Pepper and Pepper leans a little onto Kay. Pepper wraps an arm around Kay and brings her hand up to Kay’s hair, hers nail gently scratching against Kay’s scalp. Kay closed her eyes and burrows further into Pepper. 

Kay falls asleep from the warmth of Pepper and Tony. 

* * *

Friday comes fast and Steve offered to take her once again. She still wouldn’t let him follow her all the way and parted at a bookstore a few blocks from the boxing ring. 

Matt was already there when she entered. 

“Ms. Stark,” He greets her. 

“Mr. Murdock. Please, call me Kay,” Kay tells him. 

“Very well. Then refer to me as Matt,” Matt acknowledges. “Follow me.” 

They spend the next hour as Matt shows her a few defensive poses and how to escape certain holds. 

He even caught her when she fell into a vision and tripped mid-move. He didn’t ask questions that aren't relevant and Kay as thankful for that. 

Matt had a way of describing things in detail because Kay couldn’t see. He helped her learn to work on her senses and find objects. He knew how to appeal to her senses because he too was blind. 

It took a little while for Matt and Kay to figure it out but they eventually made it work. 

When Kay finished she was tired but she was glad that she made the arrangement. 

As she gathers her things, she turns towards Matt and mumbled. 

“How did things go with Wilson Fisk?” Kay knew that Matt could easily hear her. 

“Your tip checked out,” Matt mumbled back as he moves towards Kay. “Thank you.” 

“Keep yourself safe,” Kay murmured as she pulls her sunglasses back on. 

“I will see you next week,” Matt pops his cane out. “May I walk you back to your guardian?”

“You want him to know?” Kay questioned. 

“He doesn’t have to know what I do at night,” Matt placed a hand onto her shoulder. “But if you come home with random bruises then questions will be asked. This way they won’t ask.” 

“Good point,” Kay nods, leading Matt down to the cafe. 

“Kay,” Steve’s voice sounds as he approached them. 

“Matt, this is Steve Rogers,” Kay turns towards Steve. “Uncail Steve, this is Matt Murdock. He’s helping me learn to protect myself.”

“Nice to meet you… how do you know Kay?” Steve questioned Matt. 

“Vision,” Kay explained. 

She could feel Steve’s eyes look between the two of them. “He knows?”

“Yes. He won’t tell,” Kay replied. “I’m coming back next week. Are you ready to go?”

“Yeah,” Steve’s voice was a little confused but he doesn’t question her. 

“Goodbye, Matt,” Kay turns towards the blind man. “Call me whenever.” 

Matt reached a hand out and placed it onto her head. “I will. Stay safe, Kay.” 

* * *

Kay started to fall asleep on Tony’s couch more and more. Sometimes, she could coax Tony to sit with her and if she was lucky he would fall asleep. 

But Tony also had nightmares. Sometimes they were so bad that he was thrown into a PTSD attack when he woke up. 

Sometimes the whispers screamed at Kay. Wake Tony up. Comfort him. Keep him safe. 

Sometimes they yelled other things. Stay awake. He doesn’t see you. Don’t touch him.

Sometimes they were quiet and she had to guess. 

This time, when Tony fell asleep, she woke up to his screams. 

She can’t see where he is. She tries to reach out to see how he is reacting but he shoves her away. 

“Tony, it’s me!” Kay tells him. “It’s Kay. You’re safe.” Kay’s fingers find her bracelet. “Jarvis?” 

Jarvis starts reciting the usual spiel with the date, time, location, and weather. 

Tony was calming down some and Kay reached out to touch his shoulder. 

It turned out to be the wrong thing to do. Tony’s hand snaps out and connects with Kay’s face. 

Pain explodes from her mouth when she bites her tongue and she loses her balance, toppling over the arm of the couch and hits the ground hard.

She’s disoriented. Her ears ring when her head hit the ground and she can’t lift her head without falling back over. 

She can vaguely hear Jarvis talking to her through her bracelet while he simultaneously coaxing Tony through his panic attack through the speakers. 

Kay’s mouth tastes like metal. She can feel the sticky spit that dribbled from her throbbing mouth. 

Something touches her and Kay flinched away, trying to pull herself up into a ball. 

“K--y? Ca-- ou-- ear--?” The next touch was soft and the hand rests on Kay’s back for a few moments to prove that it didn’t have the intent to harm. 

The hand on her back trails to her shoulder to pull her onto her back. 

Another set of hands, calloused and rough but the touch was gentle. The two sets of hands pull her in a direction and she tips. 

She can’t tell which way was up or down. Her stomach revolts. 

There are voices talking to her but they sound distorted. 

One set of hands, the rough ones, pull her close and prop her up against themself. They keep her upright, hand cupping the side of her head to their chest. Kay can hear the steady thumping of their heart vibrating through her. 

The soft hands from before return with something wet and soft, wiping away the sticky blood that trailed down her chin.

A third set of hands, small and delicate, touch something on the back of her head and she winced when they prod a tender spot. 

One of the soft hands grasps her left hand. They’re talking to her. They’re asking a question. The soft hand squeezed hers. 

“Squeeze?” A soft voice prompts. 

Kay curls her fingers around the hand and squeezed. 

Something cold touched the sore spot on the back of her head and she flinched. 

Rough hands move to behind her back and under her knees and her world tilts again as she's lifted into someone's arms.

Her stomach violently protests and Kay is afraid that she might lose her lunch. She reached a shaky hand up to wrap it around rough hand’s neck. 

Kay can feel the stubble of a beard and she knows that rough hands is Clint. Clint is carrying her. 

Small hands keep the ice pressed to her head. Soft hands let her hand go. 

Kay belatedly realized that she probably got a concussion from her fall. Being blind and having a concussion is never a good combination. 

The phone in Kay’s pocket starts to ring and Kay jumps fingers fumbling to try and pull it out. 

She has to answer it. They might need her. 

Clint sets her down onto something hard, keeping her upright as she flips the top up and pulls it up to her left ear. 

“The Wanderer Comes at Night,” The voice starts and Kay can tell that it’s Maria. 

“Now is not a good time,” Kay’s words come out slurred. “Is it an emergency?” 

It was quiet for a moment. “I need you to find Fury and tell me if there is an attempt on his life.” 

“Okay,” Kay breathed out. “Wait.” 

Kay closed her eyes, ignoring the protests from Clint and Soft hands. Her head pounds with pain as she searched and she finally pulls the phone up to her ear again. “Search for Becker. It’s going to start.” 

“Thank you,” Maria’s voice was relieved. “Are you alright?” 

“Fine,” Kay replied but they both know it’s a lie. There is still a whining in her right ear and part of her tongue is numb. “You owe me another boon.” 

“I know,” Maria replied. “Stay safe, Wanderer.”

“You too,” Kay breathed out before she ends the call and stuff the phone back into her pocket. 

“Kay?” Clint’s voice was soft. “Can you hear me?” 

“Yes,” Kay nods. 

“You have a concussion,” Clint confirms her suspicions. “Are you alright?” 

“I’ll be fine,” Kay has had a concussion before. She knows the deal. “Where’s Dadai?”

“Tony is still calming down,” Steve comments from her right. “Pepper is with him.”

“It was an accident,” Kay tells them. 

“We know,” Natasha replied, her voice coming from behind her confirming that Natasha is Soft hands. 

“It wasn’t his fault,” Kay continued. “I shouldn’t have touched him.”

“Good luck convincing him of that,” Clint sighed. “He’ll blame himself.” 

“I know,” Kay mumbled. “I’m sorry.” 

“It wasn’t really your fault either, kiddo,” Clint squeezed her forearms in comfort. 

Sometimes, Kay hates the whispers because they stay quiet. 

And when they’re quiet, things can go wrong in an instant. 


	13. a dó dhéag

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Tony isn't good at expressing his emotions. Kay was taught to not show fear or cry because then she would get hurt at the ward. The two combined make for a messy disaster.

Following the incident where Tony accidentally struck Kay, Tony was avoiding Kay. He stocked the freezers with popsicles for her sore tongue that she bit. 

Kay knew that he felt guilty but couldn’t help but feel hurt by him avoiding her. She stopped taking naps on the sofa in the lab and instead curled up with Steve on the couch with documentaries. 

Kay felt abandoned. She felt alone and it hurt every single time Tony brushed her off. 

It got to the point where Kay stopped talking. It was how she dealt with extreme emotions. Nobody can hurt you if they don’t know how you feel. 

When Matt called her for advice about a case he was on, Kay talked to him before he left. 

“Can I ask for your advice?” Kay inquired. 

“Legal advice?” Matt questioned. 

“No… I just need advice and I don’t know anybody else that I can talk to… you can say no,” Kay mumbled. “You have no obligation to listen to my issues.”

“I’m all ears,” Matt assured her. 

So Kay explained the incident that happened and the concussion that followed. She explained Tony’s behavior and how she felt and that she didn’t know what to do.

“You’re going to have to track him down and sit him down and make him listen. Your feelings are valid and you shouldn’t be afraid to express yourself,” Matt starts, his voice soft. “Be honest and straightforward. Tell him how you feel. Tell him that he hurt you. Tell him that you miss him and him avoiding you is upsetting.”

Kay listens closely as Matt explained what she should do. 

“I’m… I’m scared,” Kay admits, upset that she felt the need to confide in a man she didn’t know to well because she had no one else to talk to. “I’m scared that he’s going to regret adopting me. That he’ll give me back to the ward.”

“I don’t know Tony Stark. I don’t know the masks he puts up for the public. But from what you have told me about him, he wouldn’t do that. He cares about you greatly,” Matt had no clue about Tony Stark and he was going in blind. “But, if he surprises us all and he does give you back, I will come to get you. You’re not going back to the ward, Kay. That, I promise you.”

“...thank you,” Kay mumbled, feeling much better than before. “I’m sorry to unload all of that on you.” 

“Don’t be. I’m happy that I can help you,” Matt replied. “If you ever need a lawyer, I hope I’m your first choice.” 

“Isn’t that conflict of interest?” Kay grins into the phone. 

“Would they really believe that the small Nelson and Murdock firm was associated with the Kay Stark?” Matt’s voice was amused. 

“Thank you Matt,” Kay’s voice was sincere. “Let me know if there’s anything I can help you with.” 

“You’ll be the first I call,” Matt promised. “Don’t be a stranger. Come to visit. I think that Foggy thought I drove you away.” 

“We’ll show him,” Kay smiles. “I better go think about what I’m going to say to Tony.” 

“I don’t need to have future vision to know that you’ll do just fine,” Matt replied. “I’ll talk to you later.”

Kay hangs up the phone and thinks about what she is going to tell Tony. 

* * *

“Hey kiddo,” Clint flops onto the couch next to Kay. “Can we talk?” 

Kay turns her head in Clint’s direction and nods. 

“Is everything alright?” Clint finally asks the one question that she knew was on his mind. 

Kay shrugged.

“Is it your head?” Clint questioned. “Does it hurt? Is it bothering you?” 

Kay shakes her head. 

“Then… what is it?” Clint inquired. 

Kay moves to tuck herself under his arm and she knows that he’s surprised at the sudden display of affection when she had pulled away after the incident in the lab. 

“I’m scared,” Kay admits in a whisper. 

Clint holds her close, one hand coming up to play with a curl of her red hair. “Of what?” 

Kay was scared of so many things. 

“The whispers,” She finally settles on that answer. 

“The whispers?” Clint repeats with a frown. “What about them scare you?” 

Kay shrugged again. She doesn’t know. 

Her powers scare her sometimes. 

“Hey,” Clint’s free hand cups her cheek and his calloused thumb wipes away a tear that Kay hadn’t realized she had shed. “It’s alright.” 

Kay turns to bury her face into Clint’s shirt, inhaling the scent that was uniquely Clint and allows herself to cry. 

“It’s alright, kid,” Clint croons, holding her close. 

“Please don’t leave me,” Kay whimpers into his shirt. 

“I’m not going anywhere,” Clint promised, squeezing her to him in a hold that was restricting but safe. 

Kay cries up all of the hurt that had been building up. She cries until she can’t cry anymore and she has a headache from the healing concussion.

Clint holds her long after she stops crying, retelling the stories of some of his missions while he was with Shield. 

And Kay felt okay again.

* * *

Kay couldn’t do it. 

She had never confronted somebody about her feelings before. Expressing her feelings used to get her hurt. 

So Kay wanders out of the tower after informing Jarvis of her whereabouts. She wasn’t following a vision so she didn’t tell anybody. 

She arrives at the rundown building and heads up to the door, knocking. 

“Ms. Stark, you’re back,” Foggy greets her. 

“Is Matt here?” Kay questioned, twisting the end of her shirt between her fingers. 

“He’s getting lunch,” Foggy replied. “But you can come in to wait for him.”

“If you wouldn’t mind,” Kay shifts and Foggy moves towards her. 

“Is it alright if I touch your shoulder to lead you?” Foggy questioned. Kay was glad that he asked rather than startling her by touching her without warning. 

Kay nods and Foggy placed a hand onto her shoulder, leading her into the building and into the same room as before. 

“Is there anything I can get you? A drink?” Foggy offered. 

“No thank you,” Kay turns him down. She doesn’t bother to sit down, full of anxiety. 

Matt arrives ten minutes later and he was surprised. 

“Kay? What are you doing here?” Matt questioned. 

“I can’t do it, Matt,” Kay admits, her voice cracking. “I don’t know how.” 

She can feel Foggy’s confused stare as Matt approached her. 

“You couldn’t pep yourself up, huh?” Matt questioned, reaching out to touch her shoulder. 

Kay moves to lean into him and Matt wraps his arms around her, his cane pressing into her back. She sniffles and she can feel Foggy awkwardly exit the room. 

“I’m so scared,” Kay admits. 

Matt pulls away and sits down with Kay. “Why don’t we start with why you think it’s so hard for you to tell Tony about your feelings.” 

So Kay tells him about the ward. She tells him about the Matron who hated tears and emotions of any kind. She hated it when they expressed fear. She tells him that she knows they won’t hurt her for expressing her feelings but there is a niggling feeling in the back of her mind that reminds her that showing emotion is bad. 

“Well, if you can’t tell him face to face then perhaps you should write a letter,” Matt suggests. 

“I don’t know how to write,” Kay frowns. “I’m blind.”

“You can get a scribe. Not me since I’m also blind but if you’re willing to let Foggy in on this then he can help us,” Matt suggests. 

“Would I have to pay the consulting fee?” Kay questioned. 

“No. We don’t have any pressing cases and I’d like to think that you’re my friend. Free advice,” Matt tells her. 

“Okay,” Kay agrees and Matt goes out to get Foggy. 

Kay supposed that Matt quickly briefed Foggy about the situation since Foggy came in and sat down with a pad of paper and listens. 

Kay starts slowly, a little unsure but her voice soon turned more confident and she started to ramble. 

Matt was unwavering silent support by her side. When Kay mentioned the abuse at the ward she could feel Foggy stare at her with confusion before he shoved that feeling away and focused on writing. 

Kay spent three hours at Nelson and Murdock and when she left, she was feeling much better and she had her thoughts collected on a page. 

Matt was her friend. She would give him all the advice he needed without a boon. 

Kay had never had a friend before. Not one she could rely on like Matt. 

She supposed she could call Maria Hill a friend but she doesn’t like to assume. So at the moment, she would keep up the deal with Maria of information in exchange for boons. 

That night, Kay heads to Tony’s lab. She moves to the table where she knew Tony would be sleeping and she pulls the letter out of her pocket and sets it right next to his head. 

“Please make sure he gets it, Jarvis,” Kay whispered.

“I will, Kay,” Jarvis assured her. “You should get to bed. It’s late.”

“Yeah,” Kay heads to get ready for bed but instead of heading to her room, she goes to Tony’s bedroom. 

Kay moves to the bed and climbs in on Tony’s side until she can snuggle against her mother. 

“Hey sweet girl,” Pepper quietly mumbled through a sleepy haze. “Is there a reason you’re in my bed?” 

“Do I need a reason?” Kay whispered. 

“No,” Pepper moves to wrap her arms around Kay. “I’ve missed you, baby girl.”

“I’m sorry,” Kay tucks her head just under Pepper’s chin and takes a deep breath of the comforting scent of her mother. 

“Don’t be sorry,” Pepper pressed a soft kiss to the top of Kay’s curly mop of hair. “I love you, sweet girl.”

“I love you too, mathair,” Kay murmured before she snuggles closer and closed her eyes. 

* * *

Kay wakes up a little when another warm body joins them in bed. She recognized the scent of oil and smoke as Tony. 

She keeps her eyes closed as Tony’s hand gently touched her hair, pushing it back. 

“I am so sorry, buttercup,” Tony whispered, assuming that Kay was asleep. “I never meant to make you feel like that. I’m an asshole. I’m sorry.” 

Tony lets out a sigh. “I’m not good with these touchy-feely things. I’m allergic to emotions. But I didn’t mean to come off as someone who didn’t want you anymore. You are my daughter. I was upset with myself. It’s on me, not you.” 

Kay feels him lean down and press a kiss into her hair. “I love you kiddo. Don’t you dare ever forget that. You are loved.”

Kay lets herself be sandwiched between Tony and Pepper, snuggling closer into her mother so that Tony has more room. 

Kay easily falls back asleep. 

When she dreams, she dreams of screams. There’s blood and destruction and crying. 

Tony is there. He’s choking on blood, so dark as it splatters out of his mouth when he rasps for breath. 

“Kay--” His hand, fingers crooked as though they were broken, reached up towards something she couldn’t see. “Go.”

His hand goes limp and his stare goes glassy as he fades.

Kay jerks back to reality and darkness settles across her vision once more. She was breathing rapidly, hear head dangerously pounding. 

She could hear Tony and Pepper asking her questions but she shakes her head. 

“Dadai!” She croaked. 

“I’m here, buttercup,” Tony’s voice was soft. 

“I don’t-- I can’t--” Kay reached towards him. “I don’t know who hurts you.”   
“I’m right here,” Tony pulls Kay towards him and she grips onto him hard, pulling him closer. “I’m not hurt. It’s alright.”

“I can’t help you,” Kay shakes her head burying her face into his pajama top. “You tell me to go. I let you die.”

“I’m not dead, baby girl,” Tony grabs one of her hands and brings it up to rest on his chest. 

Kay knew that he hated it whenever someone touched the arc reactor. But Tony pressed her hand right on top of it. 

“You feel that. The soft thrumming? I am alive.” Tony coaxed. 

Kay pressed her hand harder into the arc reactor, Tony taking a small sharp intake of air.

“I only see you when you’re hurt,” Kay mumbled. “I try so hard.”

“The world is not on your shoulders, buttercup,” Tony cards his fingers through her hair. 

“Please don’t leave me alone again,” Kay whispers. “I think I really need you.”

The grip Tony had on Kay tightened a little. Kay feels him press a firm kiss to the top of her head.

“I think I really need you too, buttercup.”


	14. a trí déag

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Kay leaves home with Maria Hill as her guardian to confront a dead man whose team needs saving to collect more favors.
> 
> Set in Agents of Shield 3x21

The first time that Kay needed to follow a huge vision, she wasn’t sure if it would happen. She needed to disappear for three days to set everything straight before she could come back. 

“Auntin Nat?” Kay approached where Natasha was training with Clint. 

“Yes?” Natasha pauses in her sparring to give her attention to Kay. 

“I need a really big favor,” Kay shifts, rocking on her feet. 

“How big?” Natasha’s reply was slow and cautious. 

“I need to follow a vision,” Kay sighs. 

“You need me to back you?” Natasha questioned. 

“I need you to convince Dadai that Maria Hill can watch me for three days,” Kay replied. 

“Maria Hill?” Natasha repeats at the same time that Clint goes; “Three days?”

“Yes,” Kay nods. 

“Does Maria know she’s watching you?” Natasha questioned. 

“Not yet. But she will and she’ll agree,” Kay nods. “I need to leave soon.”

“You can’t give me any information?” Natasha inquired. 

Kay shakes her head. 

Kay was grateful that she had an Auntin as awesome as Natasha because three hours later Clint was guiding her into Shield to where Maria was, a small backpack with her.

“Remember to call if you need anything. Call so that we know you’re okay,” Clint reminds her as he knocks on the door to her office.

“Enter,” Maria calls out and Clint sets a hand onto Kay’s shoulder. 

“Keep safe,” Clint squeezed her shoulder. “Please.” 

“I’ll be safe,” Kay promised, hugging him before she turns and enters the office. 

“Stark?” Maria questioned as Kay enters. “Why are you here? How did you get in?”

“I need you to take me to the Bus,” Kay replied. “And I need you to be my guardian for three days.” 

It was quiet for a few moments. 

“What?” Maria sighed. 

“I have to go to the Bus and because the others can’t know about the walking dead then you have to take me,” Kay explained, feeling a little frustrated. “I’m sorry that I’m dropping all of this on you but they’re going to need me really soon.”

Maria lets out a sigh but Kay can feel her stand. “Okay.”

Maria approached Kay and wrapped an arm around her shoulder to guide her out of her office and down to one of the jets. 

Kay was wearing the same thing she wore the first time she met Maria but also had a scarf tied around the lower half of her face. 

The jet ride was only a few hours long and Maria guides Kay off of the jet. 

“Maria,” A male voice was surprised to see her. “What brings you here?” 

His eyes then fall on the child by her side. “And who is this?”

“Gather up your team,” Maria starts, guiding Kay forward and onto the Bus. 

Kay shifts uncomfortably at Maria’s side. She was still unsure that she was doing the right thing. She left her parents behind and was worried about what would happen when she came back. 

“Alright,” The same male voice pipes up. “Everyone is here.” 

“Alright Kid, this is your show,” Maria tells Kay. Kay can feel the stares as eyes drop onto her. 

“My name is The Wanderer,” Kay starts. “Some of you may know of me already. Some large event happens soon and I came to stop it.”

“You really are a kid,” Kay recognized the voice of Leo Fitz. “I thought you were at least eighteen. How old are you?”

“Does it matter?” Kay folds her arms. “I am staying for three days.” 

“I’m staying with her,” Maria adds. 

“Do you have a name other than The Wanderer?” A female questioned. 

“I do,” Kay nods. “But you’re not privy to it. It is not only for my safety but for yours.”

“Well, we appreciate all that you have done for us,” The male voice from before steps forward. “My name is Phil Coulson.”

Kay knows that already. 

“He’s holding his hand out,” Maria replied. 

“I’m blind,” Kay explained, pointing up to the sunglasses. “I cannot see you.”

“But you see the future?” Another voice questioned. 

“I need names to go with voices,” Kay starts. “Come to me and introduce yourselves so I can get an idea of who is who.”

Phil steps up first. “Phil Coulson.” He replied again. 

Kay steps forward, reaching her hands up to touch his arms. She takes in his unique scent. “Coulson.”

Kay steps back. 

“Leo Fitz,” Fitz steps up. “Thank you again for what you did.”

“Fitz,” Kay nods, reaching out to touch him. His hand meets hers when she struggles. She takes in his smell too. 

“Jemma Simmons,” The next person steps up. 

Kay reaches for them, frowning when her fingers touch the lab coat. “Simmons. Nice to see you better.”   
“Lance Hunter,” The next person steps forward.

“Hunter,” Kay nods, reaching out to touch him. She then turns towards the figure beside him. “You must be Barbara Morse.”   
“Just Bobbi,” She replied, allowing Kay to grasp her wrist. 

Kay then turns to the next person.

“Alphonso MacKenzie,” The next person starts. “But you can call me Mack.”

“Mack,” Kay nods and touched him too before turning to the last person in the room. “You must be Melinda May.” 

Kay steps towards her and reached her hand out. “May I please touch you.”

A hand clasped her wrist, allowing Kay to touch her wrist. “Thank you.”

Kay then steps back and turns towards Maria. 

“Are you done?” Maria questioned.

“Nope,” Kay shakes her head. “I’m here for one reason. Where is Daisy Johnson?”

It was quiet for a few moments. “Daisy?” Phil finally repeats. “She’s in isolation.”

“I know that,” Kay huffs. “Where is she. I want to see her.”   
“Kid,” Maria starts. 

“You trusted me to get you away from that sniper,” Kay tells Maria, folding her arms. “Trust me to know what I’m doing here too.”

“You heard the kid,” Maria tells Phil. 

“You think sending a blind boy into Daisy’s cell is going to help?” Lance questioned. 

Neither Maria or Kay tell him he was wrong about her gender. 

“I came,” Kay replied. “Where is she? Don’t make me find her myself.”

“She will,” Maria shrugged. 

A hand falls onto her shoulder and Kay wasn’t expecting it. She violently flinched away from the unexpected touch, reaching out to grab Maria’s coat. 

“Hey,” Maria’s voice was stern. “She can’t see you. Warn her before you touch her.”

“Right, sorry,” Fitz replied. “I can take you.”

Kay nods, letting Maria go and reaching towards Fitz. 

Fitz takes her hand and guides her towards where Daisy was. 

“Hey,” Fitz starts as they stop in front of the cell. “This is The Wanderer.”

“The kid that helped with Simmons?” Daisy inquired. 

“Yeah,” Fitz nodded. 

“Let me in,” Kay looks up at Fitz. 

“What? No!” Fitz shakes his head. 

“I’m going to get inside one way or another,” Kay frowns. “Let me in. Consider it the boon you owe me.”

Fitz sighed but Kay can hear him unlock the door. 

“What are you doing?” Daisy demanded. 

“Here,” Fitz guides her forward until Kay steps into the cell before he closed the door. 

“What are you doing? Get out of here!” Daisy snaps. 

“I came here for you, Daisy,” Kay steps forward, unsure of the room’s layout. 

“Why? Do I hurt someone?” Daisy demands. 

“I came here because you need someone in your corner,” Kay replied. 

“I don’t need you,” Daisy snaps. 

“I know a lot about you,” Kay shuffles forward. “I know about everything you’ve been through.”

“And you know all about how I’m feeling, right?” Daisy sneered. “You’re here to tell me to forgive myself.”

“I can’t tell you how to feel,” Kay keeps heading towards Daisy’s voice. “What you’re feeling is perfectly okay. You can feel dangerous and hate yourself and blame yourself.”

“You know all about that, don’t you?” Daisy demanded. 

“I do,” Kay replied. “You may not know my identity but I was given to a psychiatric hospital when I was little and practically raised there. They thought my visions made me crazy. I screamed because I saw deaths and people get hurt.”

Kay knows that Daisy is listening. She finally finds the bed where Daisy is. Her fingers find the sheets. “There are times where I hate myself and what I am but I’ve learned to live with it and find the good.”

“There’s nothing good about this!” Daisy exclaimed. 

“Not yet. Daisy, I’ve seen you do so much good. Your future is so bright,” Kay sits on the edge of the bed. 

Daisy was quiet for a moment before she pipes up in a whisper. “Do I ever learn to control it?”

Kay nods and she can hear Daisy sob. 

Kay reached out until her hand find’s Daisy’s and she placed a hand over hers. 

Daisy’s hand grabs onto her and squeezed. 

Kay shuffles forward and pulls Daisy towards her until she can touch Daisy’s shoulder. 

Daisy collapsed into her, crying. 

Kay wraps her arms around her, holding her tight. She knew how much Daisy needed contact. 

“You are not alone,” Kay mumbles, one hand coming up to cradle Daisy’s head to her shoulder. “I’ve got you.”

Kay hums like she did when she was with Natasha, reaching a hand up to pull the scarf down from where it covered her mouth so that Daisy can hear her better. 

Kay holds Daisy until she goes quiet and keeps her hold until Daisy falls asleep against her shoulder. 

Kay extracts herself from Daisy’s hold, laying her down as she makes her way towards the door. 

“Maria,” Kay mumbled. “Maria. I need you.”

The door opens and Kay stumbles into whoever opened the door. 

“Woah, hey,” Mack catches her. “Are you alright?” 

“Get Maria,” Kay repeats. 

“Can I set you down or do you need me to carry you?” Mack questioned. 

“I need Maria,” Kay repeats, feeling the fuzzy feeling in her head. 

“Alright, uh,” Mack frowns. “I’m going to pick you up.”

Kay collapsed against him and he scoops her into his arms, heading towards where Maria was. 

“Commander Hill,” Mack calls out as he enters the kitchen area where all the others were. 

“Kid!” Maria stands and hurries towards him. “What’s wrong?” 

Kay reached for Maria and Mack sets her onto her feet and Maria takes her from Mack. 

“I need…” Kay grabs onto Maria’s uniform. “Protect my identity.”

“From what?” Maria questioned moments before Kay goes limp and she realized exactly what she meant.

“Everyone out,” Maria demands, lowing Kay onto the floor. “Now!” 

The agents don’t ask questions and leave so that Maria can pull the scarf from Kay as she begins to seize. She then pulls the sunglasses off so that Kay doesn’t crack them. 

“Jesus,” Maria pulls Kay up into her lap a little when she stops seizing. “You want me to watch you seize and protect your identity for three days. You can trust Phil.”

Maria holds Kay until the teenager comes back and blearily shoves the sunglasses back onto her face, redoing the scarf. 

“Anything to share?” Maria questioned. 

“Nothing noteworthy,” Kay replied.

Maria lets the others come back in but doesn’t make Kay get out of her lap. 

“What was that?” Simmons inquired. 

“A vision,” Maria replied as Kay quietly rests against her. 

“She seizes when she gets visions?” Fitz questioned, sounding a little excited. 

“Not always,” Kay shakes her head. 

“And you can’t tell us what you saw?” Lance questioned. 

“Sometimes I can but most of the time it will change the future,” Kay shrugged. 

“How did you come to know Maria?” Phil questioned, changing the subject. 

Kay lets out an involuntary grin. “Clint took me to see her at Shield.”

“You’ve only seen her once?” Phil questioned. “And she trusted you enough to let you here?”

“No, I’ve seen her four times,” Kay corrects. 

“The second time you showed up on my doorstep unannounced in the wee hours of the morning,” Maria adds. 

“I didn’t want to let you die,” Kay replied. 

“Die?” Fitz repeats. 

“I saved her from death three times and gave her a way to contact me. She passed my number onto you per my command,” Kay replied. 

“How old are you?” Mack finally pipes up. “You can’t be older than eighteen.”

“You are correct,” Kay nods. “Maria is here as my guardian.”

“How old are you?” Bobbi questioned “Seventeen? Eighteen?” 

Kay looks towards Maria.

“It’s your call, Kid,” She replied. “Tell them or don’t.”

“I’m sixteen,” Kay replied, turning to face them again. “I’ve been in the psych ward since I--”

Kay trails off.

“Hey?” Fitz stepped forward. 

“It’s alright,” Maria stepped towards Kay, wrapping her arm around Kay’s shoulder and rubbing her arms. “You’re okay. You’re safe. Just ride it out.”

“M--Maria?” Kay gasped out. 

“I’m here,” Maria assured her. 

“Leo,” Kay mumbled. “Leopold.”

Fitz looked towards Maria uncertainly. 

“He’s here too,” Maria assured her. 

“Don’t let him,” Kay shakes her head. “Don’t let him go. You’ll be safe. Please.”

“Let him go where?” Maria pushed. 

“Gas,” Kay takes a deep ragged breath of air, reaching up to yank on the scarf. “I can’t breathe.”

Maria moves in front of Kay and pulls the bottom of her scarf down. “Just breathe. It’s okay. The gas isn’t real.”

Kay is choking for air and Maria feels helpless. 

“If I may,” Simmons starts, moving forward. 

Maria moves back and lets Simmons grabs Kay’s shoulders. 

“Come on, sit,” Simmons instructs, lowering Kay to sit on the floor. “There you go. It’s alright.”

“Don’t go,” Kay moans. “Don’t go.”

“You need to breathe,” Simmons tells her. “Come on.”

Simmons reached out and pressed the heel of her hand against Kay’s sternum and rubbing. 

Kay gasps in pain and takes a few choppy breaths. 

“There you go, just breathe,” Simmons encourages. “Deep breaths. Inhale. Exhale. You can do it.”

Maria realized that there are tears trickling out from under Kay’s sunglasses. 

Kay reached up to rub her eyes. 

“Are you back?” Maria questioned, moving to kneel next to Kay. 

Kay nods. “I need. I need… I’m sorry. I’m so sorry.”

“Sorry?” Phil repeats. 

“I’m sorry. I’m sorry,” Kay repeats. “I’m so sorry.” 

“Sorry for what?” Lance questioned. 

“I need… I have to look,” Kay looks up at Maria. “I need to look.”

“No, Clint was clear on that,” Maria was firm. “No forcing visions.”

“I have to,” Kay shakes her head. “I have to look. I have to see if there’s another way.”

“Clint says it hurts you,” Maria replied. “No.”

Kay frowns. “I’m going to look. Make sure I don’t bleed too much.” 

“Bleed?” Fitz repeats. 

It soon becomes clear was Kay means when blood starts to trickle from her nose. 

After fifteen minutes, Kay comes back. 

“What did you see?” Maria questioned. 

“One hundred and sixteen routes,” Kay whispered. “One hundred and two bad. Seven good but turn bad. Three are chaos. Four the world ends.”

“The world ends?” Lance repeats. “Is anybody else hearing this?”

“I have to change it,” Kay mumbled. “I have to change it.”

“C’mon Kid,” Maria crouched and pulled Kay to her feet. “Let’s call it a day. You still need to call your parents.”

Kay leans into Maria, breathing in shaky breaths as she tries to calm herself. 

“Fitz?” Kay mumbled. 

“Yes?” Fitz’s voice was cautious. 

“Don’t run. You’ll be okay. Don’t run,” Kay tells him. “Please.”

“Don’t run where?” Fitz asks. 

Kay reached up to snake her fingers under her hat and yank at her hair in distress. 

“Hey, let go,” Maria’s hands find hers. “I know you’re upset but hurting yourself solves nothing.”

“I--” Kay’s hands shake. “I want to stop it so bad.”

“Come on,” Maria’s arm moves to wrap around Kay’s shoulders before she scoops Kay off the floor and into her arms, her Shield training kicking in. 

Kay wraps her arms around Maria’s neck. 

“Simmons?” Kay mumbled. 

“Yes?” Simmons moves forward. 

“How stocked is the medbay?” Kay whispered. 

“Very well stocked…” Simmons slowly replied. 

Kay nods, resting her head on Maria’s shoulder and letting herself relax. 

* * *

Kay wakes up at precisely the moment she is meant to and slips out of bed, pulling her sunglasses and hat on and moving out of her room. 

She lets her feet guide her to where she needed to be and she searched in the future for the correct passcode to the door. 

“Wanderer?” Daisy questioned as Kay entered. 

“Yes,” Kay nods, closing the door behind her. 

“What are you doing here?” Daisy mumbled. 

“I don’t know yet,” Kay replied truthfully. She tilts her head to the side in question. “Do you need me?”

“No?” Daisy replied. 

“I am where I am meant to be,” Kay shrugged. “May I join you on the bed?”

“Sure,” Daisy shuffles to the side so that Kay can crawl up to sit on the bed too. “Why don’t you wear shoes?”

Kay considers her answers, knowing that she was being monitored. 

“At the ward, I had to learn to walk without a cane,” Kay finally replied. “And whenever I made a mistake, my feet were whipped to make it more painful to walk and as a reminder to do better.”

“Did they do… other things?” Daisy questioned.

Kay pulls her legs up to rest her head on her knees, wrapping her arms around her legs. “Many.”

“Did they hurt you?” Daisy’s inquiry was said slowly as if she was afraid of Kay’s reply. 

“Yes,” Kay nods, keeping the answer short. “I am willing to give you any information you would like if it would make you feel better about me.”

“Even your identity?” Daisy questioned. 

“If that is what will make you feel better then yes,” Kay nods, prepared to face the consequences of her actions. 

“Could you?” Daisy’s voice was quiet. 

Kay nods. “Pull the sheets over us.”

Daisy pulled the sheets over the two of them, the glow of the light barely seeping through the thin cloth. 

Kay reached up to pull her hat off before she removed her sunglasses. 

“You’re…” Daisy’s voice was shocked. 

“It is important for not only my safety but for yours too that my identity remain a secret,” Kay warns. 

“Of course,” Daisy nods. “You can trust me.”

“I know I can. I wouldn’t have shown you if I didn’t think I could,” Kay replied. “Would you like to talk for a few moments? Microphones can’t hear us under here.”

“Your childhood was pretty shitty, huh?” Daisy mumbled. 

“I was in foster care too,” Kay replied. Daisy’s head jerks up. “I know a lot about you. I was in foster care for a short period before I was determined dangerous and crazy and abandoned at the ward.”

“What is it about people with powers and shitty childhoods, huh?” Daisy mused. 

“People with bad childhoods and great amounts of power learn how they can make sure that nobody grows up the same way they did. They want to do good after being told they were bad,” Kay replied. “I was told that I was stupid. A retard. Bitch. Slut. Whore. I was told that nobody would ever want me. Sure, I got adopted and I have a family that loves me but sometimes I have a nagging feeling in the back of my head that they’re going to leave me just like everybody else.”

“I feel that way too,” Daisy admits. 

“And it’s okay. We have to remind ourselves that this is different. I know that you’ve had your rough patches with the people out there. I’ve had rough patches with my adopted family. But we get through it and I’m reminded of how much they love me. Those people out there, they love you, Daisy. They care about you and only want what is best for you. You may not want to forgive yourself as they suggest and that’s okay but they care about you. Don’t ever forget that.”

“How bad was it?” Daisy questioned. “The asylum?”

“The worst,” Kay mumbled. 

“The worst I got in foster care was being beat. Got a scar from getting my head cracked open. Was that the worst? The beatings?” Daisy questioned. 

Kay shakes her head. “No.”

“Then what?” Daisy questioned. 

Kay bites her lower lip. She promised to be honest with Daisy. “His name was Harry.”

“Harry?” Daisy repeats, noticing how Kay says his name with disdain. 

“What he did was worse than any hit,” Kay whispered. 

Daisy picks up on it. “He touched you?”

Kay nods. 

“Did he… go any further?” Daisy questioned slowly. 

“No. I bit him when he tried,” Kay replied. 

“What’s his last name?” Daisy questioned. 

“McCain,” Kay replied. “Why?”

“I’m going to make sure Harry can’t hurt anyone ever again,” Daisy replied. “Us foster kids gotta look after each other.” 

Kay smiles softly. “Thank you.”

“So. How does it feel to know you’re a Stark?” Daisy asks. 

“I’m adopted, remember. I’m not really a Stark despite what the papers say,” Kay points out. 

“Why did they adopt you?” Daisy frowns. “Not that you shouldn’t be adopted by why did Iron-Man adopt you in specific? Was it just for your visions?”

“It was at first. Mainly because I just had visions of the Avengers, mainly Tony. It was for both of our safety because it wasn’t safe if someone knew and could take me for information on them,” Kay explained. "But we grew to love each other quickly."

“The best family is found family, right?” Daisy questioned. 

Kay smiles before it drops off her face and her face goes blank. She leans forward and slumps against Daisy’s side. 

After a few moments, Kay shakes her head and looks back up at Daisy. “I know that you really feel like you need Hive but you don’t.”

“It hurts,” Daisy admits. 

“I know,” Kay nods. “It’s okay. Remember that I’m on your side and so is your family.”

Kay doesn’t get off of Daisy and Daisy doesn’t move away from her. 

“The others are going to come in soon to see what’s going on. Please refer to me with male pronouns because they think I’m a boy,” Kay sighed. 

“For a bunch of agents, they can be idiots,” Daisy laughs. “Okay. What should I call you?”

Kay shrugged. 

Daisy gets a grin on her face and hooks her arm around Kay’s neck, giving her a noogie. “Then you’re my new little brother.”

Kay laughs. “I’ve always wanted an older sibling. Us foster kids gotta stick together, right?”

“Here,” Daisy passed Kay her sunglasses and hat back so that she can put them on before they pull the sheet back over their heads to the foot of the bed. 

“You’ve been under that blanket for a while,” Phil comments. “What were you doing?”

“Talking,” Kay replied. 

“You’ve been talking for an hour,” Bobbi pipes up. “What on earth was so interesting?”

“Can’t I talk to my little brother?” Daisy questioned, hooking her arm around Kay again and giving her another noogie, careful not to displace her hat. They both laugh.

“Little brother?” More than one agent repeats. 

Kay looks up at Daisy with a grin as they repeat together. 

“Us foster kids gotta stick together.”


End file.
